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"You use AI, or you fall behind," said Erik Smolinski, an options trader who has consistently beaten the S&P 500 to become financially independent.
Erik Smolinski, a full-time options trader who has achieved financial independence by consistently outperforming the S&P 500, shared his top AI tool recommendations for investment research. As of May 2026, his preferred tools include Claude, Claude Code, Codex, and Gemini. For investors undertaking moderate to advanced research, Smolinski strongly advises using the combination of Claude Code and Codex. These specialized AI tools are designed to facilitate the building, reviewing, and running of complex technical projects, making advanced data analysis more accessible. While Gemini is considered a beneficial addition for broader data review, it is not deemed essential for the core research functions. For typical long-term investors who do not require such a comprehensive and specialized setup, Smolinski suggests starting with simpler, general-purpose chatbots like Claude or ChatGPT to begin their AI-assisted investing journey.
Smolinski observes that many individuals are currently underutilizing AI for basic tasks, barely scratching the surface of its potential. For investors, he recommends initiating their AI usage by articulating specific investment goals in natural language within a chatbot interface like Claude or ChatGPT. Example prompts include: "I'm a long-term investor saving for retirement. Help me understand how I can use AI to analyze my portfolio and make better decisions," or "I want to build a portfolio that does [blank]," specifying objectives like beating the S&P 500, reducing volatility, or generating income. AI can then assist in refining these goals and exploring implicit questions related to risk tolerance and desired outcomes. For robust portfolio stress-testing, Smolinski suggests employing AI to conduct Monte Carlo simulations, which project thousands of diverse future scenarios, providing a more thorough understanding of potential performance. He emphasizes that AI serves as a powerful tool for enhancing informed decision-making and risk comprehension, rather than managing money directly.
Erik Smolinski actively integrates AI into his strategy development process to scrutinize and challenge his own investment assumptions. He prompts AI to "disprove my own thesis" or "identify if I'm seeing something that's not there," which helps him uncover novel ideas and potential weaknesses that he might otherwise overlook. Regular investors can adopt a similar critical approach by asking questions such as: "What are the biggest risks in this investment thesis?", "Am I overweight in one sector?", "What assumptions am I making about future returns?", or "What historical examples contradict my view?". A crucial warning from Smolinski is never to blindly trust AI's outputs, as models are prone to errors, misinterpretations of data, or generating faulty code. He advises treating AI strictly as a research aid, not a personalized financial advisor, and firmly believes that adopting AI is increasingly essential for investors to avoid falling behind in the rapidly evolving market.