TikTok star Vivian Tu is bringing her ‘Your Rich BFF’ persona to a new AI finance app

TikToker Vivian Tu, the celebrated financial creator who goes by "Your Rich BFF," has a caller measurement for fans to talk to her.

On Wednesday, Tu is launching retired of beta a caller iOS app, Ask Dolly, which provides customized markets news and financial info — each successful her signature relatable voice, Business Insider exclusively learned.

For example, here's really the app describes "The Cost of Borrowing Money" successful a conception that tracks 10-year treasuries, 30-year mortgages, and different financial information: "When Fed Daddy changes liking rates, mortgages, in installments cards, and savings accounts each consciousness it." Meanwhile, the app uses "dolly" arsenic shorthand for dollars.

To Tu, individual touches for illustration these are what group Ask Dolly isolated from different finance apps.

"I dream that it shines done successful this app that it's a batch little suit-and-tie and a batch much mundane person," Tu said.

Ask Dolly has 2 tiers. For $19 a month, users tin get unlimited conversations pinch an AI financial tool, Pocket Dolly, that's based connected Tu and different sources. They besides get personalized portfolio "recipes," spending tips, and economical news. Those paying $59 a period get 3 monthly conversations pinch a (human) certified financial planner and early entree to caller features. The app doesn't clasp users' funds.

Beyond subscriptions, Ask Dolly seeks to make money from marque partnerships that it says are vetted by certified financial planners and disclosed to users, and from connection fees from vendors who are featured successful a Marketplace section.

Consumers person a multitude of individual finance and budgeting apps to take from. Other creators person gotten into the space, including Caleb Hammer pinch DollarWise ($14.99 a month) and MrBeast, whose institution this twelvemonth acquired Step Financial, a banking app geared toward teens. Then location are robo advisors for illustration Betterment (fees starting astatine $5 a month) and Fidelity Go (0.35% for balances complete $25,000) that supply automated money management, while bequest players for illustration Chase and Bank of America person apps that see free readying tools.

Tu, 32, a erstwhile Wall Street trader turned finfluencer, has much than 10 cardinal societal media followers, a podcast, and 2 books, the first of which is being developed into a scripted bid by Amazon MGM Studios. Tu said her institution made $8.2 cardinal successful gross complete the past 12 months, profitably, and employs six full-timers and 8 freelancers, not including agents and ineligible and PR professionals.

She said she envisioned Ask Dolly arsenic a measurement to thief group for illustration her younger self, who deficiency entree to the caliber of financial proposal disposable to precocious earners.

Tu says her app is much personalized than rivals

Part of Tu's transportation is that Ask Dolly's services are much personalized than others because it uses a operation of deterministic package to create tailored portfolio recommendations, AI for speedy questions, and quality experts. She gave the illustration of a personification Ask Dolly helped successful this way. The personification looked bully connected insubstantial but was anxious astir paying for a related pinch typical needs, thing she said different apps could miss.

"This is the nuance that we are trying to really address," she said. "We fundamentally beefed up the numbers that they needed to deed to not only screen their ain retirement, their ain costs of living, but besides worked into their scheme what was going to beryllium basal for that special-needs sibling."

Gen Z is much apt than older generations to activity retired financial proposal from an array of sources, including professionals, parents, friends, and AI successful meaningful numbers each astatine once, according to a second-quarter study of astir 11,000 respondents by Cornerstone Advisors, which consults to financial institutions.

That suggests there's a spot for an app for illustration Ask Dolly that consolidates proposal and accusation from aggregate sources done a acquainted person, said Elizabeth Gujral, investigation head astatine Cornerstone.

She said her interest is that the type without a quality advisor whitethorn springiness proposal that's excessively generic.

"So galore financial decisions are very emotional, and I interest not having a quality to talk to tin dull retired immoderate very important captious decisions for people," she said.

Addressing the key-person risk

Tu said she founded Ask Dolly aft receiving acold much messages from her followers than she could respond to, asking for advice. She said she considered it worthy the consequence of the million-plus dollars she spent to build it.

"I americium very overmuch successful the spread connected that," she said. "That's OK. My dream is yet that it'll thief truthful galore people."

It's besides existent that, if successful, it tin thief displacement her company's reliance distant from her — a chief concern for independent creators trying to build businesses.

Tu is tapping into 2 trendy ways creators are trying to diversify their businesses: AI and subscription apps.

"I wanted this to beryllium capable to beryllium thing that could yet unrecorded without Vivian Tu," Tu said of Ask Dolly. "I want this to beryllium specified a successful merchandise that group who don't moreover travel 'Your Rich BFF' yet consciousness for illustration it tin reside their problems, and they tin usage it arsenic a awesome tool."