Sequoia Capital is betting zero commissions will transform wealth management — and it's placing a big bet on an AI-based stock-picking startup for financial advisers

Vise, a fintech that uses artificial intelligence to help financial advisers build customized portfolios for clients, just raised a $14.5 million Series A. 
The fintech's pitch of a focus towards stock picking  comes at an opportune time. Brokerages' decision to drop trading fees in the fall of 2019 has helped make that a more cost-effective option. 
The round was led by Sequoia Capital, and included participation from the Founders Fund, Bling Capital, and Steve Chen, cofounder of YouTube, all previous investors. 
"Most advisers still provide their clients the same generic portfolios of mutual funds, ETFs, and investments that aren't at all personalized to the client's needs," Samir Vasavada, cofounder and CEO of Vise, told Business Insider.
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A fintech using artificial intelligence to help independent financial advisors offer more personalized portfolios to customers just closed a $14.5 million Series A led by Sequoia Capital. 
Vise uses AI to build customized portfolios for customers, automating the investment process for financial advisers and leaving them to focus on managing clients and growing their business.
The sweet spot for the startup, which also secured investment from previous backers the Founders Fund, Bling Capital, and Steve Chen, cofounder of YouTube, among others, is independent financial advisors managing between $1 million and $100 million who are looking to outsource the investment side of their business.
"Most advisors still provide their clients the same generic portfolios of mutual funds, ETFs, and investments that aren't at all personalized to the client's needs," Samir Vasavada, cofounder and CEO of Vise, told Business Insider. "They are often times expensive, hard to manage, and just don't give that advisor much of a reason to succeed."
Read more: Why Morgan Stanley, which has 15,000-plus financial advisers catering to the super-wealthy, is buying a discount broker known for its talking baby ads
Vise, which was founded in 2016, charges a fee on the advisor's assets under management. Vasavada declined to disclose how much money is currently on the platform, but said it has roughly $800 million in "asset commitments," meaning agreements have been signed with the advisor and the money just needs to be onboarded. 
The fintech's pitch of a focus towards stock picking , as opposed to managed funds, comes at an opportune time. Brokerages' decision to drop trading fees in the fall of 2019 has helped make that a more cost-effective option. 
"Before it was really expensive, especially for a $100,000 or $200,000 account, to invest in individual securities and manage that portfolio because trading commissions ate into the principle," Runik Mehrotra, cofounder and chief investment officer of Vise, told Business Insider. "But today it's actually cheaper to just buy all 500...