How Finny Works
Understanding the AI assistant in FinanceModel
Reading time: ~8 minutes
1. What Finny Is
Finny at a Glance
Finny is an AI-assisted workflow and analysis helper built into FinanceModel. It supports you during financial modeling tasks by providing guidance, explanations, and contextual assistance.
An Assistant, Not a Decision-Maker
Finny is designed to help you work more efficiently, not to make decisions on your behalf. Every action that affects your models requires your explicit confirmation. Finny provides suggestions and explanations—you decide what to do with them.
Contextual and Task-Aware
Finny understands what you're working on and tailors its assistance accordingly. Whether you're building a model, analyzing outputs, or preparing an export, Finny provides relevant help for your current task.
2. What Finny Helps With
Finny provides assistance across several areas of the financial modeling workflow:
Explaining Models and Outputs
Finny can explain what a calculation means, how variables are connected, and why outputs appear the way they do. This helps you understand your model without needing to trace every formula manually.
Guiding Workflows
When you're unsure what to do next, Finny can suggest logical next steps based on where you are in the modeling process. This is especially helpful for new users or complex workflows.
Helping Interpret Results
Finny can provide context for model outputs, such as explaining what a particular metric represents or how it might be used in analysis. Interpretation remains your responsibility.
Supporting Exports and Documentation
Finny can help you prepare exports, understand what will be included, and ensure your documentation is complete before sharing with stakeholders.
Assisting with Troubleshooting
If something isn't working as expected, Finny can help identify potential issues and suggest corrective actions for you to review and apply.
3. What Finny Does Not Do
Finny has explicit boundaries designed to keep you in control and ensure responsible use:
Finny Does Not:
- Provide financial, legal, or tax advice — Finny offers explanations and guidance, not professional advice. Consult qualified professionals for advice.
- Make autonomous decisions — Finny never takes actions without your explicit confirmation. You remain in control of all changes to your models.
- Execute actions without user confirmation — Significant actions like saving, exporting, or sharing always require your approval.
- Replace professional judgment — Finny supports your work but cannot substitute for domain expertise, experience, or critical thinking.
These boundaries are intentional. They ensure Finny remains a helpful tool while keeping you responsible for the quality and appropriateness of your work.
4. Human-in-the-Loop Design
FinanceModel is built on human-in-the-loop principles, ensuring you remain in control at every step.
You Are Responsible for Inputs and Decisions
The quality of model outputs depends on the inputs and assumptions you provide. Finny can help you understand and refine your inputs, but you are responsible for their accuracy.
Suggestions Are Explainable and Reviewable
When Finny makes a suggestion, you can see the reasoning behind it. You can accept, modify, or reject any suggestion based on your own judgment.
Corrections Are Respected and Preserved
If you correct something Finny suggested, that correction is preserved. Finny learns from context within your session but does not override your explicit choices.
Override Capability
You can always override, modify, or ignore Finny's suggestions. AI assistance is optional and additive—it does not constrain how you use the platform.
5. How Finny Uses Data
Finny operates within strict data boundaries to protect your information:
Data Handling Principles
- Works only with your data — Finny accesses information you provide during your session to deliver relevant assistance.
- No cross-customer learning — Your data is never used to train models that serve other customers.
- Organization-level isolation — Each organization's data is logically isolated and processed independently.
- No training on private data — Customer data is not used to improve or fine-tune AI capabilities for other users.
For complete details on data handling, storage, and retention, see the Privacy Policy and AI Usage Disclosure.
6. Finny in Daily Use
Getting the most out of Finny means knowing when to engage it and when to rely on your own expertise.
When to Ask Finny
- You want to understand a calculation or output
- You're unsure what step to take next
- You need help navigating a feature
- You want to check your work before exporting
- You encounter an error or unexpected behavior
When to Validate Independently
- Making final decisions based on outputs
- Verifying accuracy for critical analyses
- Confirming industry-specific assumptions
- Preparing deliverables for external stakeholders
- Any situation with significant consequences
Best Practices for Effective Use
- Be specific — Clear, specific questions get more useful responses
- Verify important outputs — Always cross-check critical numbers
- Use Finny as a starting point — Let it accelerate your work, then apply your judgment
- Provide feedback — If something is unclear or incorrect, clarify or correct it
7. Limitations & Responsible Use
Understanding Finny's limitations helps you use it responsibly and effectively.
Important Limitations
- AI can be incomplete — Finny's suggestions may not cover all relevant considerations for a given task
- AI can be incorrect — Finny may occasionally provide inaccurate information that requires correction
- Context limitations — Finny operates based on information available during your session and may lack broader context
- Not a substitute for expertise — AI assistance does not replace professional financial, legal, or domain expertise
Your Responsibilities
- Validate all outputs before relying on them for decisions
- Apply your professional judgment to interpret results
- Review and verify suggestions before accepting them
- Consult qualified professionals for advice outside your expertise
Designed to Support, Not Replace
Finny is designed to enhance your productivity and reduce friction in financial modeling workflows. It is not designed to replace your expertise, judgment, or professional responsibilities. Use Finny as a capable assistant, and bring your own expertise to every decision.