1、Spring 2026The state of intelligent financeAI,agents,and trustThe state of intelligent finance:AI,agents,and trustAI is rapidly becoming an essential financial tool for many Americans,raising the bar for what effective financial experiences look like:personalized,permissioned,and proactive.Table of

2、contents03A word from Plaid06Intelligent is the new digital11Financial literacy for all17AI,take the wheel23No trust without transparency 29AI,the financial level up 34Building for the era of intelligent finance35The infrastructure behind trusted intelligent financeA word from PlaidTheres a revealin

3、g finding in our latest research:over half of Americans used AI to manage their finances in the past 12 months.Not to research financial products or comparison shop,but to actually manage their money.And almost as many say theyd trust it to do more.Thats not a trend.Its a structural shift.In partner

4、ship with the Harris Poll,we surveyed thousands of American adults to understand how theyre using AI in their financial lives,what theyre willing to hand over to automation,and what it will take to earn their trust.What we found was striking:not just in how quickly the technology has advanced,but in

5、 how quickly consumers have followed.Fintech put powerful tools in all of our pockets,offering new ways to monitor,move,save,borrow,and invest.It raised the bar for what financial experiences could feel like.But access and visibility alone dont solve for complexity,and for many consumers,complexity

6、remains the defining challenge of modern financial life.AI is meeting that challenge fast.Americans now want products that understand their situation,surface what matters,and increasingly act on their behalf.Half of US consumers already say that managing money without AI will soon feel outdated.But