How pre-retirees are approaching AI and tech

While there is a stereotypical view that retirees shy away from using the latest technology, a recent study finds that most are increasingly using technology, both in general and specifically for financial and retirement planning purposes.

According to the Society of Actuaries’ 2024 Retirement Risk Survey – Technology and Retirement, released in October 2025, smartphones overwhelmingly were the most popular type of technology used across all age groups and income levels. Overall, 95% of pre-retirees and 92% of retirees said they use a smartphone daily. Computers and tablets were the next most popular technologies, regardless of age, while smart home device use was notably more prominent at younger ages.

“I found the level of smartphone usage at older ages surprising and interesting as compared to younger ages. I would have expected a much steeper drop at ages 75-80. This was especially apparent to me when you compare it to the usage of smart home devices, where the drop is significantly steeper at the older ages,” according to Steve Siegel, senior practice research actuary, SOA Research Institute.

“I think this data can help financial professionals understand how their clients use technology and ways they may be able to more efficiently advise and reach them. For example, with the high use of smartphones, they can be thinking about how they can use that as a communication means, rather than say paper mailings,” he adds.

When it comes to technological platforms used for financial and retirement planning, online banking is used by the majority of respondents (over 60%). It is also the platform with the lowest level of perceived risk.

Almost all of those surveyed, 99% of pre-retirees and 98% of retirees, use at least one type of online security protection, with strong passwords being most prevalent. While many respondents use some protection, less than 50% use more proactive measures, such as reporting phishing emails and identity theft protection.

How pre-retirees and retirees use AI

The survey explored how people use AI (for example, ChatGPT, robo-advisors, Amazon AI, etc.) and how they plan to use it in the future. It is important to note some people may not be aware they’re using AI. For example, many online searches or interactions may be fully generated by AI, but users may not be aware of that fact.

They found that pre-retirees are significantly more likely to be currently using AI, while retirees are more likely to believe they do not need AI.

A higher number of pre-retirees (46%) are actively using AI when compared to retirees (26%). AI use tends to be more prevalent at both younger ages and higher income levels.

“As AI continues to evolve, it will become increasingly transparent, so you simply will not notice it. A concrete example is if you look at reports written by AI a year or two ago, they often read as flat and lacking personality. Reports coming out of AI now have become much more human-like and harder to distinguish in that way,” Siegel notes.

Diving into the results, pre-retirees at higher income levels are more likely to be actively using AI. Specifically, 29% of pre-retirees with incomes over $100k are using AI whenever they can and hope to use it more, compared to 18% in the $50k-$100k income group and 8% in the less than $50k income group.

Technological platforms used for finances

When asked how often they use various technologies (e.g., online banking, web searches) as tools to obtain financial advice, plan for retirement, and manage their retirement finances, online banking is the most frequently used platform. Web searches and the use of social media followed in frequency of use.

Both pre-retirees and retirees are concerned about online safety, saying they prioritize using strong passwords as their primary precautionary step to prevent potential scams or fraudulent activities. Specifically, 87% of pre-retirees and 86% of retirees use strong passwords. Enabling two-factor authentication ranked second in prevalence of use.

“With technology advancing at a rapid pace, the aging populations may face challenges in appropriately dealing with new and evolving tools. It would be worth exploring ways to educate people on best practices for proactive fraud prevention and increasing accessibility to various forms of protection,” Siegel says.

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