How Excel AI Agents Actually Work for Financial Modelers to Understand LLMs & Tools with Tim Jacks

In this episode of The ModSquad, hosts Paul Barnhurst, Ian Schnoor, and Giles Male welcome Tim Jacks, founder of Taglo, for an insightful discussion on the integration of AI in financial modeling. Tim’s expertise bridges the worlds of financial modeling and AI, and in this episode, he shares his journey and discusses how AI is reshaping the financial modeling landscape.

Tim Jacks is the founder of Taglo, a company dedicated to improving financial modeling with AI technology. His career journey spans financial consulting and software development, including building financial modeling tools. Over time, Tim's interest in artificial intelligence grew, and he delved into how AI, particularly Large Language Models (LLMs), could be used to enhance financial modeling processes.

Expect to Learn

1. How AI is revolutionizing financial modeling and the specific ways it’s being used today.
2. The technical components behind AI agents and how they differ from simple chatbots.
3. The importance of context and system prompts when working with LLMs in financial tasks.
4. Insights into the memory limitations of LLMs and how agents work around this challenge.

Here are a few quotes from the episode:

1. "If you're using AI for Excel modeling, you need to remind it to follow good financial modeling principles, like the FAST Standard." – Tim Jacks
2. "The beauty of LLMs is that you can go back and change the conversation, they're stateless, so it's like resetting the clock." – Tim Jacks

Tim Jacks provided valuable insights into the integration of AI in financial modeling, particularly how LLMs and agents are transforming workflows. While AI can significantly enhance efficiency, human expertise remains essential for applying financial modeling principles. Understanding the technical workings of these tools helps users leverage them effectively. The future of financial modeling will be human-led, AI-assisted.

Follow Tim:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/timjacks/

Follow Ian:

LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/ianschnoor/

Follow Giles Male:

LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/giles-male-30643b15/

In today’s episode:

[00:05] - Intro & Hosts

[01:33] - Guest Introduction: Tim Jacks

[02:42] - Tim's Background in Modelling & AI

[04:16] - What Are LLMs Really?

[09:55] - ChatGPT vs. LLMs Explained

[12:09] - LLMs Have No Memory

[15:02] - How Tools Add Context to AI

[19:35] - What Is an AI Agent?

[22:35] - How Excel Agents Work

[30:08] - Demo: Tools in Action

[35:03] - Defining an Agent: LLM + Tools + Prompts

[38:49] - Key Takeaway for Modellers