Gauss builds personal AI investment analyst for retail investors, charges $19/month
Sep 10, 2025 with Bruno Koba
Key Points
- Gauss charges $19/month for an AI investment analyst that monitors retail investors' portfolios and surfaces personalized stock recommendations, operating under a freemium model with 1,700 users generating revenue.
- The startup is pursuing RIA registration by end of September 2025 to shift from subscription pricing to AUM-based fees, currently operating under standard 'not investment advice' disclaimers.
- Gauss differentiates from free alternatives like ChatGPT by integrating portfolio data via Plaid and personalizing recommendations to each user's holdings and thesis, though sustaining $19/month retention against free competitors remains unproven.
Summary
Gauss is a personal AI investment analyst for retail investors. Co-founder Bruno Koba and his partner Michael Far built it for thesis-driven professionals who have a market view but lack time to monitor positions. The service costs $19/month on a freemium model and connects to brokerage accounts through Plaid with read-only access, surfacing portfolio-aware recommendations without executing trades.
The product operates in a legally constrained space. Gauss currently uses a standard "not investment advice" disclaimer while pursuing RIA registration, which Bruno expects to complete by September 2025. Once regulated, the company plans to shift from flat subscription fees to an AUM-based model.
Gauss has 1,700 users and is generating revenue. Bruno tracks signups and retention rather than assets under management. The company closed a seed round at an undisclosed valuation and has a small allocation still open for angel checks.
Bruno's background fits the problem. He started in data science at Nubank, spent three years doing fintech investing across Latin America at a VC firm, then finished an MBA at Stanford before joining the YC batch. Gauss is one of few B2C companies in a cohort that skews heavily B2B.
The core risk is that ChatGPT or Perplexity can already approximate AI-assisted stock research for free. Bruno's differentiation rests on portfolio integration and personalization: Gauss knows your holdings and thesis while a generic model does not. Whether that justifies $19/month retention remains unclear.