We’re officially in AI’s influencer era. From Reese Witherspoon telling us to use AI to Mel Robbins partnering with Microsoft, AI is being marketed specifically to women.
But while AI is becoming more accessible, it’s also becoming easier to make a mistake. In this week’s episode of Office Hours, we’re breaking down a recent (and dangerous) viral prompt and how you can use AI for your finances without handing over your private details.
The Mel Robbins controversy: What went wrong
Recently, Mel Robbins shared a sponsored post for Microsoft Copilot that suggested users upload their personal financial documents directly into a chatbot to help with budgeting.
Here is why I would never, ever recommend doing that:
Public vs. private: When you use a free chatbot, you are essentially speaking in a public square. Unless you are a paying customer with specific privacy settings turned on, your data can be used for training.
Irresponsible messaging: Promoting the upload of sensitive health or financial data to first-time users is a major safety risk.
Outsourced judgement: Just because a celebrity—or an AI—tells you it’s a “best practice” doesn’t mean it is.
A better way to “AI” your finances
You can absolutely use AI to help with your money, but you have to be smart about it. Last week, I used Claude to map out several financial scenarios for myself, and I didn’t give it a single “real” number.
Try these safe alternatives instead:
Use sample data: Instead of your real statement, give the AI a “fictional” version of your budget to see how it handles the math.
Ask for general principles: Ask for budgeting strategies or general investment definitions rather than specific advice on your own accounts.
Scenario mapping: Ask the AI to build a report or graph based on “what-if” scenarios (like “If I save $500 a month at 5% interest, what does that look like in 10 years?”).
AI isn’t difficult to use, and you are not “behind”. You just need to remember the two golden rules we talk about in this episode: Don’t outsource your judgement, and don’t share sensitive data.
For more info on staying safe, check out AILiteracyGuide.com, a free resource.
Have a question for a future episode? Leave a comment or reach out!
Until next week, happy AI-ing!
