As I watch artificial intelligence weave itself into nearly every corner of modern decision-making, I find myself asking a deeply human question: What does fiduciary responsibility mean in the age of AI?
For decades, fiduciary duty has stood as one of the most sacred principles in professional life — the legal and ethical promise to act in someone else’s best interest. It has defined the trust between advisors and clients, institutions and investors, doctors and patients. In finance, it means protecting a client’s assets with loyalty and care. In governance, it demands transparency, honesty, and prudence in every choice.
But today, the landscape is shifting. AI systems are not just assisting in those decisions — they’re often making them. They do it faster, at greater scale, and sometimes with little or no human intervention. And that forces us to confront uncomfortable questions about trust and accountability. When an algorithm decides who gets a loan, a job, or a diagnosis, who carries the fiduciary burden now?
