Robinhood CEO says AI agents will soon rival human traders, manage portfolio

AI agents are on track to become as capable as human traders, according to Vlad Tenev, US financial services company Robinhood’s chief executive officer.

Speaking to CNBC, Tenev said the long-term vision behind "agentic trading" is to enable AI systems to perform nearly every task that a human trader can, such as researching investments and executing trades to managing portfolios.

Tenev said that such tools could give retail investors access to capabilities that have traditionally been reserved for large financial institutions.


Large trading firms have long relied on sophisticated technology and automation to gain an edge, and Robinhood wants to make similar capabilities accessible to retail investors, Tenev told CNBC.

The company had in May unveiled tools that allow AI agents to trade stocks and make purchases on behalf of users. The company said its users can create a dedicated trading account, separate from their primary one, and have AI ‌agents trade ⁠on ⁠their behalf.

Tenev had said the aim is not simply to make trading faster but to narrow the gap between institutional and individual investors.

Meanwhile, Robinhood had last month announced a fresh round of job cuts, laying off around 290 employees, or roughly 10% of its full-time workforce. In his message to employees, Tenev had explained that the restructuring is aimed at maximising what he called “talent density” to ensure the company is staffed with highly skilled employees who can take on greater responsibility.

The AI push reflects a wider race across the technology industry to develop agents that can independently complete complex tasks with limited human intervention.

Leading AI companies, including OpenAI and Anthropic, have been investing heavily in the technology, which is seen as the next major evolution of artificial intelligence.