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Advisors Adopt AI Fast, but Still Aren’t Getting Their Time Back, Says 2026 Morningstar Investor Perspectives Advisor Study

$MORNPress releaseOct 5, 2026, 7:30 AM ETRead the release

Morningstar released its 2026 Investor Perspectives Advisor study, finding rapid AI adoption among advisors with no-AI usage falling from 33% to 20% year-over-year. The study highlights a time paradox: advisors spend 53% of their workweek on client-focused work versus an ideal 63%, while only 18% rate AI tools as highly reliable for investment decisions. Private-markets adoption grew to 40% of advisors from 35%, but satisfaction with manager transparency fell to 25% from 38%, citing fees and fee transparency as the top due-diligence challenge at 46%.

Key figures

Survey respondents
501
Advisors no ai use 2025
33%
Advisors no ai use 2026
20%
Advisors client focused time share
53%
Advisors ideal client focused share
63%
Advisors offering private investments
40%
Highly satisfied manager transparency
25% (down from 38%)

AI analysis

The rest of the AI analysis, red flags and sentiment are part of Signal8 Pro.

AI-generated analysis of a public disclosure. Not investment advice; verify against the original document.