The generative artificial intelligence frenzy surrounding popular tools like the chatbot ChatGPT has spread to the financial services sector.
JPMorgan applied to trademark “IndexGPT” earlier this month, according to paperwork filed with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.
The paperwork indicated the AI tool would be used to help consumers pick stocks. The application for IndexGPT said it would involve “using artificial intelligence for use in computer software selection of financial securities and financial assets.”
New technology simplifying people’s access to buying and selling stocks has disrupted traditional trading in recent years. In 2021, people organizing on social media websites such as Reddit famously pumped up stocks, including Gamestop, through the use of Robinhood, a no-fee investment app available for download through Apple and Google’s app stores.
The tech and social media tools’ ability to simplify users’ access to the stock market led to a surge of retail investors that upended the expectations of professional investors.
Online armies of retail investors have proven to be fast adopters of new technology and have likely already encountered generative AI tools.
For example, Meta and Snapchat have already made generative AI tools available to their audiences, including for things such as chatbots and turning text into high-quality video.
How JPMorgan envisions using generative AI tools and the audience the company expects to attract are not fully known. The company declined to comment on Friday.
JPMorgan’s IndexGPT product has approximately three years from approval of its trademark application to launch its product, according to CNBC, which first uncovered the company’s paperwork.
From Wall Street to Main Street, generative AI tools are expanding.
Wendy’s said earlier this month it was experimenting with Google’s AI tools to create a new drive-thru experience featuring a chatbot to speak with people ordering meals. Wendy’s FreshAI is set to debut at a Columbus, Ohio-area restaurant next month.
Alongside businesses’ efforts to innovate using the new AI tools, the federal government is preparing to regulate the AI industry.
President Biden’s White House Office of Science and Technology Policy has said it is making a new “National AI Strategy,” while Senate Majority Leader Charles E. Schumer is leading an effort to write new AI rules on Capitol Hill. Big Tech titans Microsoft and Google are cheering on the regulatory efforts.
• Ryan Lovelace can be reached at rlovelace@washingtontimes.com.
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