Edward Jones and Gallup find only 27% of Americans trust AI for financial advice

A new Edward Jones-Gallup poll released Wednesday found that relatively few Americans say they trust artificial intelligence to provide financial advice, with only 27 percent of respondents reporting that they trust AI “some” or “a great deal” as a source of guidance, according to The Hill.

The survey results suggest skepticism about using AI for personal finance decisions, even as the technology continues to expand into daily life and consumer services in the United States. The report said AI’s trust level is higher than none of the more trusted sources, but it stands out as low compared with most categories of financial guidance respondents consider.

In the same poll, social media influencers were identified as the only group falling below AI in the level of trust respondents reported. The finding places financial advice delivered through AI behind even less formal or traditionally uncredentialed sources of guidance in terms of overall public confidence.

The poll, which was released by Edward Jones and Gallup, also reflects how Americans distinguish between technology’s convenience and its reliability when the subject is money. While respondents may be willing to use AI tools for information or routine tasks, the survey indicates that trust drops when people associate the technology with financial outcomes and advice.

The results arrive as public and private discussions about AI adoption continue, including questions about accuracy, accountability, and how financial information is produced and verified. In the consumer finance context, those questions can affect how people decide what to do with their savings, retirement planning, and other long-term financial commitments.

The survey’s trust measure does not itself indicate whether AI providers are compliant with financial regulations or whether AI systems are being used in ways that violate any rules. It does, however, provide a snapshot of consumer confidence in AI as an advice source at the time of the poll.

For policymakers and regulators, the results underscore a practical point: even without a formal enforcement change, public trust can shape how quickly AI-based financial tools gain adoption, and that in turn can affect market penetration and consumer risk exposure, depending on how such tools are marketed and used.

For the financial industry, the findings may increase pressure on firms and advisers that use AI tools to explain how recommendations are generated, how risks and uncertainties are handled, and how human oversight is applied when clients rely on guidance tied to AI-generated outputs.