AI and Personal Finance

I've always wanted to achieve financial freedom. In the early 2000s, the term 'FIRE' (Financial Independence, Retire Early) wasn't popularized, but the community was growing. I wanted to be financially free by the age of 30. But how? Study hard, gain more knowledge, get a degree from a top university, land a high-paying job, and I'll achieve financial freedom. What else is there?

So, that's what I did. But looking back now, the closest I ever got to financial freedom was right after I graduated from college. At that time, the city where I lived had reasonably priced real estate, about $300,000 for a livable house. Had I bought a house then, my monthly mortgage would have been around $1,000.

But here’s the kicker – if I rented out the place and lived in just one room, I could've made about $2,500 in rent. That’s a $1,500 profit every month, enough to cover all my living expenses in the city. In essence, I could have achieved FIRE, my life goal, right after college.
 
Ironically, by the time I hit 30, with an Ivy League Master's Degree, experience at two of the world's top companies, and a much higher paycheck, I found myself further from FIRE than ever. Why? Because by then, the real estate prices had soared. $1,500 wouldn’t have been enough to cover my living expenses anymore. I was back to depending on a paycheck.

This whole situation just shows how crucial financial literacy is in our lives. Understanding money management is a vital life skill. Yet, it’s not something we're taught by our parents, or in schools. So, the impact of financial skills on every aspect of our lives is huge.

I realize now that what I needed then was guidance. Something accessible that could answer all my finance questions and help me reach my personal finance goals. The internet was a big help, but it had the problem of not being specific enough and having a lot of bad information mixed in with the good. So gathered up a team of friends and coworkers who share my vision and together, we created WeFIRE.

The idea behind WeFIRE is that we all, no matter where we are on our journey of financial freedom, need advice, and we need it constantly. Most financial advising companies need you to have a significant amount invested with them before they assign a personal advisor. WeFIRE can offer a 24/7 advisor who knows your accounts and can crunch budgets and saving plans nearly instantly. If I had this when I graduated from college, I would have made much better decisions regarding my financial planning and would be in a very different position now. We made WeFIRE so others won't make the same poor decisions. We hope this AI tech can offer true benefits to people on their path to retirement. Welcome to try it out!