Frequently Asked Questions

You have three options. (1) Manual entry: go to PORTFOLIO → Holdings and click + Add. (2) CSV import: in MANAGE → Import & Export, download the CSV template, fill it in, and choose Import CSV. (3) Brokerage sync: connect your brokerage in MANAGE → Connected Brokerages for automatic position import.

Yes. Alloy Alpha supports optional brokerage sync via Snaptrade, a financial data connectivity provider. Go to MANAGE → Brokerage and click CONNECT BROKERAGE. You authenticate directly with your broker via OAuth — Alloy Alpha never sees your brokerage username, password, or account number. Only read-only position data (ticker, shares, account label) is synced. The connection can be revoked at any time. Manual entry and CSV import remain available whether or not you connect a brokerage.

Brokerage sync currently supports: Schwab, Fidelity, Interactive Brokers (IBKR), Robinhood, E*Trade, Vanguard, Coinbase, Kraken, Webull, Questrade, and others. The full up-to-date list is shown inside the connection flow at MANAGE → Brokerage → CONNECT BROKERAGE.

Advisor-managed accounts — including LPL Financial, Raymond James, Edward Jones, and Merrill Lynch managed accounts — are not supported via brokerage sync. These platforms do not expose consumer-facing OAuth connections. If your account is held through an advisor platform, use CSV import instead: download your positions from your broker's client portal and import via the ··· menu on the PORTFOLIO tab.

Only three fields are required: Ticker symbol, Number of shares, and Cost basis per share. Everything else (purchase date, target price, stop loss, notes) is optional but improves the intelligence features.

Download the import template from PORTFOLIO → ··· menu → IMPORT CSV. Fill it in and save as CSV (UTF-8). Then use the same menu to import. The template has instructions in the first few rows — the importer skips them automatically.

Stock and ETF prices come from Finnhub, with a Yahoo Finance fallback for OTC and less-common tickers. Cryptocurrency prices come from CoinGecko. Money market funds (like SNOXX) are fixed at $1.00 since that's always their NAV.

Data is fetched on demand — when you load the dashboard or trigger a manual refresh. AlloyAlpha is not a real-time streaming platform; prices reflect the last completed quote from the data provider at the time of refresh. You can set auto-refresh intervals (5m, 15m, 30m) in the ··· menu.

Very thinly traded OTC stocks may not have quotes available from either Finnhub or Yahoo Finance. The ticker will still appear in your portfolio but without price data. You can manually update your cost basis in the Edit modal.

Yes. Berkshire Hathaway B shares (BRK-B) are handled with automatic ticker normalization — Finnhub requires BRK.B while Yahoo uses BRK-B. AlloyAlpha handles this transparently.

INVESTED is the total market value of your equity, ETF, crypto, and option positions. CASH shows the value of money market or cash positions separately (like SNOXX or VMFXX). The header stat shows INVESTED only — this is intentional so your P&L metrics aren't diluted by uninvested cash.

It's the hold duration — how long you've held that position, calculated from the Purchase Date you entered. It shows in days (e.g. "45d"), months ("8mo"), or years ("3.7yr") depending on length. A green color means over 1 year (long-term capital gains territory). You can add purchase dates via the Edit modal or in the CSV import.

Risk metrics use 1 year of daily closing prices. Beta and Alpha are calculated relative to SPY (S&P 500). The portfolio return series is built from either daily snapshot history (most accurate) or synthesized from holding-level close data weighted by portfolio allocation. At least 20 data points are required for any metric to display.

INTEL uses Google Gemini AI to run analysis on your portfolio. It includes: Macro Event Modeling (how macro scenarios affect your specific holdings), Investment Theses with Bayesian scoring, Insider signal detection from SEC EDGAR Form 4 filings, and Brier score tracking to calibrate your prediction accuracy over time.

Most AI features require explicit action — INTEL Brief, Macro Stress Test, Theses, and RADAR Strategic Ideas only run when you click the relevant button. One exception: the AI Morning Brief auto-generates once per day when you open the Dashboard tab. In all cases, only ticker symbols, sector classifications, and portfolio weight percentages are transmitted — for example: "AAPL 8.5% Technology, MSFT 7.2% Technology." Dollar values, share counts, cost basis, purchase dates, and your personal identity are never sent to any AI service.

Before using INTEL features, AlloyAlpha shows a consent notice explaining what data is sent to Google Gemini. This is required for transparency. You can decline and still use all non-AI features of the app.

Quad Gate is Alloy Alpha's multi-gate signal conviction engine. A signal fires when a holding passes multiple gates simultaneously — currently eight: Bollinger Band squeeze (volatility compression), OBV divergence (hidden volume accumulation), insider activity (SEC Form 4 buys), macro catalyst alignment, short squeeze readiness, earnings surprise momentum (consistent EPS beats), analyst revision momentum, and 52-week breakout proximity. The more gates in alignment, the stronger the signal conviction.

RSI (Relative Strength Index) measures momentum on a 0–100 scale. Above 70 suggests a position may be overbought (potential pullback risk). Below 30 suggests oversold (potential entry opportunity). These are indicators, not predictions — context always matters.

You can set price alert thresholds per holding in the Edit modal. When a holding's price crosses your threshold on refresh, the alert bell in the SIGNALS tab shows a count badge. You need to grant browser notification permission (the yellow banner at the top) to receive push notifications.

Only you. Firebase Firestore security rules are configured so that your data is isolated to your authenticated Google account. No other Alloy Alpha user, no admin, and no third-party service can read your holdings. Even we cannot query your portfolio data from the Firebase console without your credentials. The only data that leaves your device is what is explicitly described below.

No. We do not sell, license, rent, or otherwise transfer your portfolio data or personal information to any third party. Your data is used exclusively to power the features of the application you signed up for.

No. Alloy Alpha has read-only access to position data and cannot place trades or move funds. If you use brokerage sync, your OAuth credentials go directly to Snaptrade — Alloy Alpha never receives your brokerage username, password, or account number. The only data synced is ticker symbols, share counts, and account labels. If you prefer not to connect a brokerage at all, manual entry and CSV import are always available.

When AI features run, Gemini receives a structured list of ticker symbols, sector classifications, and portfolio weight percentages — for example: "NVDA 12.3% Technology, CCJ 8.1% Energy." Dollar values, share counts, cost basis figures, purchase dates, and your personal identity are never sent to any AI service.

Alloy Alpha uses the Gemini API under Google's standard API terms. By default, Google states that data submitted via the API is not used to train their models. We have taken steps to confirm this under our account settings. If you have concerns, you can opt out of AI features entirely — INTEL Brief, Macro Stress Test, RADAR Strategic Ideas, and Morning Brief will not run unless triggered, with the exception of Morning Brief which auto-runs on the Dashboard tab. You can avoid it by not opening the Dashboard sub-tab.

Your portfolio holdings, alert settings, and INTEL history are stored in Firebase Firestore (Google Cloud, US region). Your login session is managed by Firebase Authentication — via Google OAuth or email magic link. No data is stored on Alloy Alpha's own servers — the application is stateless and runs on Vercel's edge network. Your display preferences (theme, private mode, column order) are stored only in your browser's localStorage and never transmitted anywhere.

Yes, completely. The fastest way is to use the in-app delete flow: MANAGE → Account → Delete My Account. This permanently removes all Firestore data tied to your account. You can also email privacy@alloyalpha.com and we will process the deletion within 30 days. Individual holdings and INTEL history can be deleted at any time without closing your account.

No. Nothing in AlloyAlpha — including AI analysis, signals, risk metrics, or price data — constitutes financial, investment, tax, or legal advice. AlloyAlpha is an informational tool. Always consult a qualified financial professional before making investment decisions.