In this Australian Finance Podcast episode, Owen Rask sits down with Pearler co-founder and CTO Hayden Smith to talk all things money, investing, mindset, AI, and financial tech. They explore:
- How Hayden thinks about saving and frugality
- What AI means for investors, workers, and platforms like Pearler
- The story behind Hayden’s famous wisdom teeth money hack
- How Pearler is building investing tools for real humans
- Lessons from being a software engineer in an AI world
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Topics Covered
- Hayden’s unconventional wisdom teeth money-saving story
- Why he compares personal finance to skill-building
- How his money mindset has evolved with age and net worth
- Frugality vs growth and what spending teaches you
- What Pearler got wrong early and what it’s becoming now
- Hayden’s take on AI’s impact on software, investing and platforms
- What “vibe coding” is and why it matters
- The truth about passive income tools and automation
- Behind the scenes of how Pearler’s UI is built around goals
- The problem with overengineering in finance
- Why simple investing is hard and where tech can help
- Advice for young people navigating careers in the AI era
- How to develop competence and why it’s underrated
- Why diversification matters in life and investing
- What the future of investing platforms could look like



