Morgan Stanley is getting into the “robo-advice” business, where software manages funds instead of people. The service, Access Investing, is aimed at younger investors, and helps them put their money with the businesses they’re most interested in.
“Forty percent of our clients have chosen to invest in a theme, and the most popular ones [are] robotics and artificial intelligence,” Naureen Hassan, Chief Digital Officer for Wealth Management at Morgan Stanley, told Cheddar.
The financial firm rolled out its Access Investing division, which focuses on advising clients online, in December. Hassan says that her team has seen a lot of engagement with from people 45 and under.
Robo-advisers, or digital investment portfolios, are not very new. The field has competitors, such as Betterment or Wealthfront, that have been making strides in the sector.
But Morgan Stanley says it’s betting on its legacy to differentiate itself in the industry.
“We think it’s the Morgan Stanley investing expertise that really differentiates it,” Hassan said. “That’s why we are offering clients choice, it just isn’t only a passive portfolio, we believe in a mix of assets.”
The gaming industry is known to be skewed towards boys and men. Laila Shabir, CEO and founder of Girls Make Games, is trying to change that through three-week summer camps for young girls. "Being represented in a medium like games...is extremely important," says Shabir.
The actor, comedian, and activist created an augmented reality app called "House of Cats," which features an animated, satirical version of the president called "Trump-y Cat." A portion of the proceeds will go to support refugees. "We are going to counter his hostility with support," Takei tells Cheddar.
The San Francisco-based company, which uses artificial intelligence to generate training materials for large companies, just received an investment from JPMorgan Chase. "When you go to work, that's where A.I.'s going to have the greatest impact. It's less artificial intelligence and more augmented intelligence," says Carson Kahn, Volley's CTO.
Sonny Singh, Bitpay’s chief commercial officer, believes digital currencies will have real transactional value by next year. “Last year was a little bit about hype,” he tells Cheddar. “I think next year is going to be the year of mass adoption.”
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Comcast announced Thursday it will focus on snapping up British broadcaster Sky, clearing the way for Disney to acquire Fox's film and TV studios, the networks FX and NatGeo, and its stake in Hulu. The deal, however, would make the streaming landscape "more fragmented," says Wall Street Journal reporter Keach Hagey.
Amazon Prime Day notched a record when members purchased more than 100 million products on the company-made shopping holiday. By and large, bigger retailers triumphed over smaller companies. The challenge for Amazon, though, according to Sucharita Kodali, retail analyst at Forrester, is how to offer more niche brands enough value that they don't opt instead to go direct-to-consumer.
Cigna CEO David Cordani is co-author of "The Courage To Go Forward," a new book that explores the unique impact of micro communities. Cordani hopes Cigna's recent acquisition of Express Scripts will localize healthcare networks and expand his consumer base.
The EU is hitting Google with a $5 billion fine over antitrust violations. The European Commission claims Google's Android operating system unfairly stifled competition.
Walmart is reportedly thinking of launching a streaming service. According to The Information, the retail giant is eyeing a cheaper alternative to Amazon and Netflix, which would cost just $8.
And we talk to Galia Benartzi, co-founder and head of business development at Bancor, which is the world's largest decentralized crypto exchange. Benartzi tells Cheddar how Bancor is hoping to eradicate poverty in parts of Kenya through a new token.
Walmart is reportedly developing a new streaming service that can rival competitors Netflix and Amazon. But the massive costs associated with might make it difficult to succeed. "This is a really hard business to get into," says The Information reporter Jessica Toonkel, who broke the story on Walmart's plans.
