OpenAI’s Wall Street Ambitions
OpenAI is reportedly developing artificial intelligence systems to automate entry-level financial tasks, according to documents obtained by Bloomberg. Sources indicate the company has recruited more than 100 former investment bankers from major institutions including JPMorgan Chase, Morgan Stanley, and Goldman Sachs to contribute expertise to a project code-named “Mercury.”
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The initiative focuses on training AI models to perform time-consuming tasks that typically occupy junior analysts, such as building financial models, cleaning spreadsheets, and assembling presentation materials. Analysts suggest this represents a significant step in AI’s encroachment into traditional finance workflows.
Transformation Rather Than Elimination
Despite concerns about job displacement, experts suggest the immediate impact will likely be transformation rather than replacement of entry-level roles. According to economist Shawn DuBravac, CEO of the Avrio Institute, “I’m not convinced that we get rid of entry-level workers anytime soon, but I could imagine a world where the skill set we need those entry-level workers to have is different.”
DuBravac believes a “first wave of automation” will target structured, repeatable tasks that junior analysts typically spend hours completing. “Within the next year, I’d expect firms will move quickly to try to automate 60% to 70% of the time analysts currently spend on these lower-level tasks,” he told Fortune.
The Evolving Analyst Role
As routine tasks become automated, analysts suggest the nature of entry-level finance work will evolve significantly. DuBravac explained that senior analysts will likely assign more sophisticated work to junior staff, including building complex financial models and performing quantitative analysis that they would typically learn later in their careers.
Ram Srinivasan, managing director of consulting at JLL, described the development as “a natural evolution in investment banking.” He told Fortune that “AI will give every analyst superpowers and allow banks to compound human insight. Analysts become reviewers and customizers rather than builders from scratch, allowing each person to support more deals simultaneously.”
Workforce Implications
The report comes amid ongoing debate about AI’s impact on employment. A World Economic Forum Future of Jobs Report revealed that 40% of employers expect to reduce their workforce where AI can automate tasks.
However, according to a McKinsey report published in March, just 38% of organizations using AI predict generative AI will have little effect on workforce size in the next three years. For strategy and corporate finance specifically, 29% of respondents predicted no change in employee numbers due to generative AI use.
DuBravac suggested that “headcounts [may stay] mostly flat, but at the same time, workloads will become lighter in some areas and heavier in others.”
Educational Value in the AI Era
The shift toward automation raises questions about the value of traditional education for entry-level finance professionals. A survey published by Indeed’s Hiring Lab found that approximately 49% of Gen Z job hunters believe AI has directly reduced the value of their higher education in the job market.
Analysts suggest this may simply indicate that financial firms will seek candidates with different skills. “There could be a stronger demand for people who have a deeper expertise in AI,” DuBravac said. “You bring some of that in-house, because at the end of the day, finance is all about not just getting the right answer, but getting it more quickly than your competitors.”
The Broader AI Context
The development represents another frontier in artificial intelligence applications following the technology’s rapid advancement. As financial modeling becomes increasingly automated, the industry appears poised for significant transformation, though experts caution against overestimating the immediate impact on employment.
“We often overestimate how impactful some of the technology will be when it comes to eradicating work as we know it,” DuBravac noted. “Just like Excel spreadsheets did back in the day, [AI] will streamline some work.”
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References & Further Reading
This article draws from multiple authoritative sources. For more information, please consult:
- http://mckinsey.com/~/media/mckinsey/business%20functions/quantumblack/our%20insights/the%20state%20of%20ai/2025/the-state-of-ai-how-organizations-are-rewiring-to-capture-value_final.pdf
- https://www.weforum.org/publications/the-future-of-jobs-report-2025/
- https://www.hiringlab.org/2024/02/27/educational-requirements-job-postings/
- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Financial_modeling
- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bloomberg_L.P.
- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Artificial_intelligence
- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fortune_(magazine)
- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/OpenAI
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