News Brief: English
Summary
Top wealth advisors for the ultra-rich argue that personal referrals and high-touch service remain more effective than AI tools for acquiring new clients, despite market data firms promoting AI as a revolutionary solution.
Key Points
- AI’s Limited Role: Advisors say AI tools primarily aggregate public data to generate prospect lists, offering little exclusive information or competitive advantage.
- Power of Personal Touch: Growth is driven by referrals (40% at AlTi), personal networks (30%), and expert connections (30%), facilitated by acts of exceptional service.
- Quality Over Quantity: Elite firms target a small number of high-quality clients (e.g., 25-30 new U.S. clients/year) rather than mass prospecting.
- AI as a Potential Complement: Some see AI as useful for targeting event invitations or identifying clients in life transitions, but not as a replacement for personalized relationships.
- Client Acquisition via Search: Advisors note a new trend of ultra-wealthy clients finding firms directly through AI search platforms like ChatGPT.
新闻简报：中文
摘要
尽管市场数据公司宣扬人工智能是寻找超高净值客户的关键，但顶级财富顾问认为，个人推荐和高接触度的服务目前仍比AI工具更有效。
关键点
- AI作用有限：顾问指出，AI工具主要是聚合公开数据生成潜在客户名单，几乎不提供独家信息，竞争优势不大。
- 个人关系的力量：业务增长主要来自推荐（在AlTi占40%）、个人网络（30%）和专家人脉（30%），这往往通过提供卓越的个性化服务来实现。
- 重质不重量：高端公司追求少量高质量客户（例如，在美国每年新增25-30位客户），而非大规模寻找潜在客户。
- AI作为潜在辅助工具：一些人认为AI可用于精准定位活动邀请对象或识别经历人生重大变化的潜在客户，但不能替代个性化关系。
- 通过搜索获客：顾问注意到一个新趋势：超高净值客户正开始通过ChatGPT等AI搜索平台直接寻找顾问公司。
Original Article Link: https://www.cnbc.com/2026/01/23/wealth-client-prospecting-ria-ai.html