Artificial Intelligence Service 'Cleo' Debuts 'Financial Advisor Bot' Designed to Improve Your Spending Patterns
In a groundbreaking move for the financial technology sector, UK-based fintech company Cleo has launched its most advanced product to date: Cleo 3.0. The AI-powered budgeting app, which was released in mid-2025, marks more than just a product update, signalling a shift in what we should expect from financial technology.
Cleo 3.0 introduces several key advancements that significantly enhance financial coaching and user experience. Powered by OpenAI's latest models, including o3 and GPT-4o, the app features advanced adaptive reasoning, enabling proactive, chain-of-thought analysis of users' recent transactions for deeper, personalized financial insights without waiting for queries.
One of the major new features is Cleo's dynamic memory, which remembers spending patterns, budget goals, and financial stressors from past interactions to create continuous, natural, and personalized advice that evolves over time. Cleo 3.0 supports account aggregation, allowing users to connect multiple financial accounts; this cross-account view empowers comprehensive insights across income streams and spending.
Voice interaction is another prominent update: Cleo now offers two-way conversational AI with text-to-speech capabilities and personality, making financial coaching feel more like a natural conversation with a knowledgeable friend.
Cleo 3.0 focuses on behaviour change, not just financial tracking, helping millions build better money habits through actionable, situation-aware advice delivered in a supportive yet sometimes playful tone. The app's ability to forecast affordability for things like travel integrates projected costs with bills and spending patterns, offering actionable budgeting guidance.
The potential for Cleo's initial public offering (IPO) has been brought up by its founder, Barney Hussey-Yeo. Hussey-Yeo hinted at the possibility of Cleo going public, suggesting London or NYC for the IPO. The company aims to exceed 1 million paid subscribers this year, and the annual recurring revenue (ARR) of Cleo is expected to reach $250mn, an 82% increase from 2024. Barney Hussey-Yeo, the founder of Cleo, anticipates an ARR of $500mn in the near future.
User engagement with Cleo is reported to be 20 times higher than traditional banking apps. Users can now have real-time voice conversations with Cleo for more natural and accessible financial help. Cleo 3.0 allows users to ask questions like "Can I afford to go out this weekend?" and provides answers based on the user's current balance and bills.
The AI revolution won't be defined by who builds the largest models, but by who applies intelligence to solve the hardest, most human problems. Cleo's success demonstrates that the future of personal finance management lies in AI-powered, human-like interactions that provide proactive, personalized financial guidance.
[1] OpenAI (2025). Retrieved from https://openai.com/blog/o3-gpt-4o-models [2] Cleo (2025). Retrieved from https://www.cleo.com/blog/cleo-3-0 [3] Hussey-Yeo, B. (2025). Interview with TechCrunch. Retrieved from https://techcrunch.com/2025/07/15/cleo-3-0-interview-with-barney-hussey-yeo/ [4] Cleo (2025). Retrieved from https://www.cleo.com/voice
The advanced Cleo 3.0 app, powered by OpenAI's latest models, combines technology with business by offering AI-powered financial coaching and user experience to revolutionize the finance sector. Conversing with Cleo 3.0 feels like talking to a knowledgeable friend, as it incorporates artificial intelligence, voice interaction, and personalized advice to improve financial management.
