> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://tendrill.ai/docs/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# FAQ

> Answers to frequently asked questions about Tendrill

## General Questions

<AccordionGroup>
  <Accordion title="What is Tendrill?" icon="sparkles">
    Tendrill is an AI-powered personal wealth manager that monitors your investment portfolio and delivers proactive insights via text message. Connect your brokerage accounts, and Tendrill will watch for earnings, price movements, and news that affect your holdings - then text you when something important happens.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Is Tendrill a financial advisor?" icon="user-tie">
    **No.** Tendrill provides information and analysis, but we do not provide personalized investment advice or recommendations. We don't tell you to buy or sell anything. We're an information service that helps you stay informed about your investments.

    For personalized investment advice, please consult a licensed financial advisor or registered investment professional.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="How is Tendrill different from my brokerage's alerts?" icon="bell">
    Most brokerage alerts are basic ("AAPL is up 5%") and require manual setup for each stock. Tendrill is different:

    * **Portfolio-aware**: Calculates impact on YOUR holdings, not just raw percentages
    * **Proactive**: Automatically monitors everything you own
    * **Contextual**: Explains WHY something is happening
    * **Conversational**: Ask follow-up questions in natural language
    * **Multi-brokerage**: Aggregates across all your accounts

    It's the difference between a basic notification and a knowledgeable assistant.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="How is Tendrill different from ChatGPT or other AI chatbots?" icon="robot">
    Generic AI chatbots don't know your portfolio. Tendrill:

    * **Connects to your accounts**: Knows exactly what you own
    * **Monitors continuously**: Doesn't require you to ask
    * **Proactive alerts**: Reaches out when things happen
    * **Financial data integration**: Real-time prices, news, earnings

    ChatGPT can answer general questions. Tendrill answers questions about YOUR investments and proactively keeps you informed.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Do I need to download an app?" icon="mobile">
    **No!** Tendrill works entirely through SMS and iMessage. Just save Tendrill's number and text like you would text anyone else. No app to download, no dashboard to check (though we have one if you want it).
  </Accordion>
</AccordionGroup>

## Getting Started

<AccordionGroup>
  <Accordion title="How do I sign up?" icon="rocket">
    Visit [tendrill.ai](https://tendrill.ai), enter your phone number, verify it, and connect at least one brokerage account. The whole process takes about 5 minutes.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Is my brokerage supported?" icon="building-columns">
    Probably! Tendrill supports over 10,000 financial institutions through Plaid, including:

    * Fidelity, Schwab, Vanguard, E\*TRADE
    * Robinhood, Webull, M1 Finance
    * TD Ameritrade, Merrill Lynch
    * Most banks with investment services

    [See the full list](/getting-started/supported-brokerages) or search during sign-up.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Can I connect multiple accounts?" icon="link">
    Yes! Connect as many brokerage accounts as you have. Tendrill aggregates them into a single portfolio view while keeping individual account details available.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="What happens after I connect my accounts?" icon="check-circle">
    1. Your holdings sync (takes a few minutes to a few hours)
    2. You'll get a welcome message confirming what Tendrill found
    3. Monitoring begins automatically
    4. Text Tendrill anytime with questions
    5. Receive proactive alerts when important events happen
  </Accordion>
</AccordionGroup>

## Security & Privacy

<AccordionGroup>
  <Accordion title="Is my financial data safe?" icon="shield-check">
    Yes. Tendrill uses Plaid - the same secure infrastructure used by Venmo, Coinbase, and thousands of financial apps. Your brokerage credentials are never stored by Tendrill (you authenticate directly with your brokerage through Plaid). All data is encrypted in transit and at rest using bank-level encryption.

    [Learn more about our security practices](/privacy-security/data-protection)
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Can Tendrill access my brokerage password?" icon="key">
    **No.** You log in directly with your brokerage through Plaid's secure interface. Your username and password are never shared with or stored by Tendrill. We only receive your holdings and positions - never your credentials.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Can Tendrill make trades or move my money?" icon="ban">
    **No.** Tendrill has read-only access to your accounts. We can see your holdings but cannot execute trades, transfer funds, or modify your account in any way. This is a technical limitation of our Plaid connection, not just a policy.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Do you sell or share my financial data?" icon="hand">
    **Never.** We don't sell your data to advertisers, share it with partners, or monetize it in any way. Our business model is subscriptions, not data sales.

    [See our full commitments](/privacy-security/never-does)
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="How do I delete my data?" icon="trash">
    You can disconnect individual accounts or delete your entire Tendrill account at any time:

    * Text "disconnect \[account name]" to remove one account
    * Text "delete my account" for complete deletion
    * Or manage from your dashboard

    Data is deleted within 24 hours. [Full instructions](/privacy-security/disconnecting)
  </Accordion>
</AccordionGroup>

## Using Tendrill

<AccordionGroup>
  <Accordion title="What can I ask Tendrill?" icon="comments">
    Almost anything about your investments! Examples:

    * "How's my portfolio doing?"
    * "What's happening with Apple?"
    * "Any news about my stocks?"
    * "Compare NVDA vs AMD"
    * "When are my next earnings?"
    * "What's my allocation look like?"
    * "Should I be worried about Tesla?"

    [See more examples](/features/conversational-ai)
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="How do I set up alerts?" icon="bell">
    Just tell Tendrill what you want to know:

    * "Alert me if Apple drops below \$170"
    * "Notify me when NVDA reports earnings"
    * "Let me know if any stock drops 5% in a day"

    [Learn about smart alerts](/features/smart-alerts)
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Can I get regular portfolio updates?" icon="calendar">
    Yes! Schedule recurring updates:

    * "Send me a daily portfolio brief at 8am"
    * "Weekly recap every Sunday"
    * "Monthly performance report on the 1st"

    [Set up recurring tasks](/features/recurring-tasks)
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Will Tendrill spam me with messages?" icon="comment-slash">
    No. We're designed to respect your attention:

    * Proactive alerts only for significant events
    * No marketing messages
    * No promotional content
    * You control alert frequency

    Most users receive 2-5 proactive alerts per week. You can adjust to get more or fewer.
  </Accordion>
</AccordionGroup>

## Data & Accuracy

<AccordionGroup>
  <Accordion title="How often does my portfolio data update?" icon="rotate">
    * **Stock prices**: Real-time during market hours
    * **Holdings**: Daily (overnight sync from brokerages)
    * **News**: Continuous monitoring

    [Full details on data timing](/insights/data-timing)
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Why does Tendrill show different values than my brokerage?" icon="calculator">
    Small differences are normal due to:

    * Quote timing (different sources, different seconds)
    * Pending transactions not yet synced
    * After-hours vs. closing prices

    If you see large discrepancies, try texting "refresh my portfolio" or check that your accounts are still connected.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Can I ask about stocks I don't own?" icon="magnifying-glass">
    Yes! Tendrill can research any publicly traded stock. Ask questions like:

    * "Tell me about Palantir"
    * "What's the bull case for Google?"
    * "Watch CRWD for me" (adds to watchlist)
  </Accordion>
</AccordionGroup>

## Pricing & Account

<AccordionGroup>
  <Accordion title="How much does Tendrill cost?" icon="credit-card">
    Tendrill offers free and premium tiers:

    * **Free**: Basic portfolio monitoring, limited conversations
    * **Premium**: Unlimited conversations, advanced alerts, priority support

    Visit [tendrill.ai/pricing](https://tendrill.ai/pricing) for current pricing.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Can I try Tendrill before paying?" icon="gift">
    Yes! Our free tier lets you experience Tendrill's core features. Connect your accounts and start receiving portfolio monitoring at no cost.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="How do I cancel my subscription?" icon="xmark">
    Text "cancel subscription" or manage from your dashboard. Your account stays active (downgraded to free tier), and you can re-subscribe anytime. No cancellation fees or hassles.
  </Accordion>
</AccordionGroup>

## Troubleshooting

<AccordionGroup>
  <Accordion title="I'm not receiving text messages" icon="comment-slash">
    Check that:

    1. Your phone number is correct in your account
    2. You haven't blocked Tendrill's number
    3. Your phone can receive SMS from short codes

    Try texting "hello" to Tendrill to test the connection.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="My brokerage won't connect" icon="link-slash">
    Common fixes:

    1. Verify your brokerage credentials are correct
    2. Check if 2FA is required and complete it
    3. Ensure your brokerage isn't experiencing outages
    4. Try again in a few hours

    [Full troubleshooting guide](/connecting-accounts/troubleshooting)
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="My data looks wrong or outdated" icon="clock">
    * Text "refresh my portfolio" to force a sync
    * Check that your brokerage connection is active
    * Recent trades may take 24 hours to appear
    * Verify you're looking at the right account

    [Understanding data timing](/insights/data-timing)
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="I need help with something else" icon="headset">
    Contact our support team:

    * Text "help" to Tendrill
    * Email [david@tendrill.ai](mailto:david@tendrill.ai)
    * Visit [tendrill.ai/support](https://tendrill.ai/support)

    We typically respond within 24 hours.
  </Accordion>
</AccordionGroup>

## Still have questions?

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Contact Support" icon="envelope" href="mailto:david@tendrill.ai">
    [david@tendrill.ai](mailto:david@tendrill.ai)
  </Card>

  <Card title="Getting Started Guide" icon="rocket" href="/getting-started/quickstart">
    Step-by-step onboarding
  </Card>
</CardGroup>