This week Nick talks to Alistair Smallwood

Alistair Smallwood is the Head of Applied AI at Primer AI, where he focuses on building practical artificial intelligence tools for investment workflows. He began his career as a research analyst at Whitman Howard shortly after the Brexit vote, before moving into equity sales roles and later joining UBS as a pan-European small- and mid-cap specialist salesperson. He subsequently transitioned to the buy side with Lynott Partners, a technology-focused hedge fund, where he combined his financial expertise with self-taught coding skills to explore data-driven investing.

The discussion centres on how Primer AI is transforming equity research through AI-driven agents that replicate and augment the workflow of human analysts. While AI can commoditize access to information, the true edge in investing lies in workflow, judgment, and behavioural insight—areas where human expertise remains critical. Primer AI is designed not just to retrieve accurate financial data, but to guide analysts through modular research processes, from understanding company fundamentals to building and interpreting financial models. The platform emphasizes auditability, context retention, and continuous learning, enabling users to encode their own analytical frameworks and improve efficiency over time. The conversation also explores broader implications for financial markets, suggesting that AI may compress short-term alpha opportunities while increasing the importance of long-term thinking and differentiated judgment.

Alistair Book Choice's
Endurance by Alfred Lansing

No Spin: My Autobiography by Shane Warne

Alistair Music Choice's
Dark Side of the Moon by Pink Floyd
Money for Nothing by Dire Straits from Brothers in Arms

The Thinking Game - Documentary about DeepMind and Demis Hassabis

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