Robo investing has caught some media attention latey, as it was recently invented. RI is promoted as a way for young people to "get in" on investing with little institutional knowledge. The RI applications merely track or follow a market - US stocks vs international - Commodities vs tech stocks and so on. Media sources often mention alogorithms when discussing RI. But no one ever asks how is robo investing is any different than a mutual fund or index fund that follows S & P or similar index (cue the orchestra). It doesn't. A mutual fund or index can easily (and probably does) use algorithms or software to a kick a company out of X fund that no longer meets a certain criteria as well as bringing other companies in that now do meet the criteria. So whats the difference between RI and traditional investment products? Fees! Most online brokerages ask for a flat fee of big chunk of dough - TD Ameritrade - .30% for $5,000 or a monthly committment of $500. What more is RI than just another cleverly marketed (discuised) investment product?
