AI Tax Tool Sparks Sell-Off: Advisors and Wealth Managers Plunge as Altruist Hazel Emerges

On February 10, 2026, the launch of Altruist’s AI tax advisory tool, Hazel, triggered a sell-off across wealth management firms. Shares of Charles Schwab ( SCH), Raymond James (RJX), and others fell more than 7% on the day, the largest decline since the start of the equivalent tariffs debate in late 2025. The panic spread after Insurify’s use of ChatGPT to develop a car insurance price-comparison tool sent insurance经纪 stocks lower on Monday, February 9. Hazel, priced at $100 per month, claims to replace financial advisor teams in customizing investment strategies. Jason Wenk of Altruist said the architecture can replace any position in wealth management, prompting a broad flight-to-liquidity and billions of dollars in lost market value. John Belton of Gabelli Funds warned that companies facing technological substitution are being indiscriminately sold, as investors shift from chasing AI winners to aggressively hedging. The fear reflects the accelerating disruption by AI applications from Anthropic and others into finance, legal, and asset management, where trillions of dollars are at stake. The sell-off underscores the stress on valuation frameworks as AI moves from concept to reality.