Artificial Intelligence – Behind the Curtain Finance With Thomas Manetta

How AI Is Changing the Future of Financial Advice with Fernando San Martin (Ep. 21)

By Behind The Curtain Finance | June 5, 2026

AI gets talked about everywhere these days, but what does it actually look like when it becomes a practical tool for financial planning?

In this episode, Thomas Manetta welcomes Fernando San Martin, Senior Product Manager of Hazel by Altruist, for a conversation about the rapid changes taking place in financial planning. Fernando shares his journey from co-founding Thyme to joining Altruist, along with insights into how AI-powered tools are helping advisors uncover planning opportunities, save time, and deliver a better client experience.

Thomas and Fernando discuss:

How Hazel’s AI-powered tax planning tool identifies planning opportunities
Why tax planning has become an essential part of financial advice
The impact of AI on advisor productivity and client service
The future of financial planning technology
And more!

Connect with Thomas Manetta:

Connect with Fernando San Martin:

About our Guest:

Fernando San Martin is the Senior Product Manager of Hazel at Altruist. Originally from Spain, Fernando has built his career at the intersection of finance, software, data, and artificial intelligence. Before joining Altruist, he co-founded Thyme, an AI-powered financial planning platform designed to help advisors deliver more efficient and impactful advice. Following Altruist’s acquisition of Thyme, Fernando joined the team to lead the development of Hazel, helping advisors leverage AI-driven insights across tax planning, financial planning, and client engagement. He is passionate about using technology to improve financial outcomes while preserving the human relationships that make advice meaningful.

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AI Is Reshaping Financial Advisors’ Workflow and Client Relationships with Matt Halloran (Ep. 19)

By Behind The Curtain Finance | April 28, 2026

Staying efficient while maintaining strong client relationships is becoming more challenging for advisors.

How can technology reduce workload without losing the human connection that clients value most?documenting client conversations…

In this episode, Thomas Manetta speaks with Matt Halloran, Chief Evangelist at Zocks, about how AI is transforming the way advisors manage meetings, workflows, and client communication. They explore how tools that connect multiple systems can eliminate repetitive tasks and free up time. Matt also shares how advisors can turn client conversations into meaningful content and insights.

The conversation highlights how better prompts, smarter integrations, and authentic communication can help advisors grow while staying focused on relationships.

Key takeaways:

How AI tools connect multiple platforms to eliminate duplicate data entry and reduce manual workload
Turning client meeting insights into blogs, social posts, and video scripts using simple prompts
Why better prompts lead to better AI outcomes and how advisors can improve their inputs
Using AI-generated advisory boards to gain perspective on financial decisions and planning
Creating short-form video content that reflects real client conversations and builds authenticity
And more!

Connect with Thomas Manetta:

Connect with Matt Halloran:

About our Guest:

Matt Halloran, widely known as MattGPT, is the Chief Evangelist for Zocks and a trusted voice at the intersection of communication, leadership, and technology in financial services. A seasoned keynote presenter, three-time author, TEDx speaker, and industry expert, Matt brings more than 15 years of experience as an advisor, coach, and practice management consultant, helping professionals transform the way they connect with clients, teams, and themselves.

Known for his warmth, authenticity, and signature “nice-guy rebellion,” Matt challenges outdated ideas of leadership built on pressure, perfection, and posturing. Instead, he champions a more human approach rooted in empathy, curiosity, and intentional listening. Over the course of his career, he has helped thousands of advisors and business leaders build deeper relationships, create more meaningful impact, and rediscover the joy in their work through genuine human connection.

Matt is the author of Shut the F Up and Listen, a practical and deeply relatable book that blends real-world stories, actionable exercises, and proven tools to help people reconnect in an increasingly noisy and distracted world. His widely viewed TEDx talk expands on this philosophy and introduces the HOPE framework, Helping One Person Every Day, illustrating how small, intentional acts of presence and compassion can compound into lasting personal, professional, and cultural change.

With appearances on more than 1,000 podcasts, Matt is a natural storyteller who brings a rare mix of wisdom, humor, and heart to every stage, conversation, and audience. Whether speaking to advisors, entrepreneurs, or leadership teams, his message consistently resonates because it is practical, honest, and deeply human.

At the core of everything Matt does is a simple but powerful mission: to help people communicate better, listen deeper, and lead with love—proving that in a world increasingly driven by automation, humanity remains the ultimate competitive advantage.

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