Hedge funds and other money managers are increasingly leaning on ChatGPT for marketing, and to summarize vast reports, according to a new survey.

Forty-four percent of money managers use the artificial intelligence tool in a professional capacity, according to the report from BNP Paribas SA. Most utilize ChatGPT to generate marketing text, or to recap large documents such as regulatory filings or broker research reports.

Some of the managers surveyed said they’d like to use ChatGPT to analyze legal documents. 

Generative AI tools such as OpenAI Inc.-owned ChatGPT have quickly gained traction among money managers, as the technology can follow instructions and create content after being trained on giant amounts of input. 

In March, Citadel’s Ken Griffin said his firm is negotiating an enterprise-wide license to use ChatGPT, betting that it will automate an “enormous amount of work.” Hedge fund giant Man Group is also using the technology to detect patterns in academic papers, and it’s looking into delegating the grunt work of investor relations to the AI tool.

ChatGPT is far from perfect; OpenAI Chief Technology Officer Mira Murati told Time Magazine that it “may make up facts.”

When asked about how AI would affect alternative asset management over the next six to 12 months, the money managers generally predicted massive changes — including shrinking workforces and disrupting the quant and coding market. Striking a more positive note, managers also see AI boosting firms’ efficiency.

Adoption of the technology “lowers the bar for smaller funds to be more competitive with larger organizations,” one respondent told BNP.

The BNP report surveyed 39 individuals whose firms have a combined assets under management of US$250.5 billion. Almost 70 per cent of respondents were from the US. The majority of respondents were from fundamental firms. Quant firms have long incorporated AI technology into their models.