NEW YORK, February 4, 2026 — FactSet (NYSE:FDS | NASDAQ:FDS), a global leader in financial intelligence and enterprise data solutions, today unveiled “Fluent in Finance,” a breakthrough brand campaign, designed to pinpoint the weaknesses in “off-the-shelf” AI solutions, underscore the importance of human expertise, and encourage enterprise leaders to demand better. The campaign was created by leading strategy and creative agency VSA Partners.
The campaign, which builds on the success of FactSet’s award-winning 2023 “Not Just the Facts” brand initiative, includes four new video spots and a comprehensive out-of-home takeover of New York’s financial district. Both components leverage humorous, provocative creative to assert FactSet’s position as an industry leader at the inflection point of AI adoption.
The Problem: AI That Doesn’t Speak Your Language
As financial professionals face mounting pressure to adopt AI solutions, they’re confronted by a marketplace where every vendor claims to be “AI-powered.” But as FactSet’s campaign demonstrates, generic AI tools that lack deep understanding of financial industry language, context, and workflows can’t deliver the precision and reliability that investment professionals need.
The campaign’s video spots use humor to illustrate the disconnect between general-purpose AI and the specialized needs of finance. The creative features scenarios where an AI “assistant” misinterprets common financial terminology, like “hedge,” “gains,” “attractive spread,” “alpha,” and “exposure,” as well as more general business terms, like “big fish.” The way in which the AI misinterprets each term underscores the need for real, human expertise in enterprise AI, particularly in highly regulated industries like finance.
The out-of-home component, which launched in January, takes over the Wall Street subway station with AI-generated images that intentionally expose the tech’s limitations when confronted with industry-specific language. It’s a metacommentary that resonates immediately with enterprise decision-makers who have experienced firsthand the limitations of AI tools that don’t understand their industry.
FactSet’s Differentiator: Purpose-Built AI for Finance
Unlike generic AI solutions, FactSet’s approach is built on a foundation of more than 47 years of financial data expertise, industry-leading content, and deep understanding of institutional investment workflows. The company’s AI solutions are purpose-built for finance professionals, trained on domain-specific data, and designed with the transparency, traceability, and reliability that the industry demands.
“In an era where AI promises are everywhere, financial professionals need a partner that truly understands their world,” said Jenifer Brooks, Chief Marketing Officer at FactSet. “Our AI isn’t just powerful — it’s fluent in the language of finance. It understands the nuances, context, and workflows that drive decision-making in our industry. This campaign reflects our commitment to delivering AI solutions that our clients can actually trust with their most critical decisions.”
The campaign’s tagline, “Get a partner that’s fluent in finance,” reinforces FactSet’s positioning as not just another AI vendor, but as a strategic ally that speaks the language of institutional investment professionals.
Creative Excellence and Strategic Innovation
VSA Partners, which has served as FactSet’s brand campaign partner since 2022, developed the integrated campaign to drive breakthrough awareness while maintaining the sophisticated, humor-forward approach that made “Not Just the Facts” so successful.
“FactSet is bold, innovative and clear-eyed about who they are and what they believe,” said Kim Mickenberg, Partner, Campaign Design at VSA Partners. “By using a familiar reference—an AI assistant—to show the limits of generic AI solutions, we’re able to tap into the zeitgeist and make a clear point: Technology alone can only do so much. Ultimately, it’s the human expertise behind it that makes all the difference.”
The spots were directed by the Docter Twins (Matt and Jason Docter), who also directed the award-winning “Not Just the Facts” spots. Their cinematic and comedic sensibilities elevate every scene, giving them their signature warmth and humanity—both of which are all too rare in B2B advertising.
“Collaborating with the creatives at VSA, the FactSet client and an incredibly talented cast has been a continually evolving, rewarding process,” said Jason Docter, Director, Thinking Machine. “We couldn’t ask for a better campaign to be directing.”
“Between the recurring cast and crew, the talented creatives at VSA, and the always welcoming client at the FactSet offices in Norwalk, CT, we’ve become somewhat of a makeshift family,” said Matt Docter, Director, Thinking Machine. “It feels like some kind of annual improv reunion.”
