Trading-bot questions, answered without the hype
The questions retail traders actually type into a search bar — safety, legality, scams, track records — answered in plain English by a team that runs its own desk in public. Every page carries data from our live tape, and none of it is investment advice.
All answers
What does 'not a fund' mean for trading software?
'Not a fund' means the vendor never holds, pools, or manages your money: you buy software, your dollars stay at your own broker in an account only you control, …
Read the answer →Updated August 25, 2026Should a trading bot know your brokerage password?
Never. A bot holding your password is indistinguishable from the bot's author holding your password — full account access, invisible to you, revocable only by c…
Read the answer →Updated August 20, 2026What is review-only mode in agentic trading?
Review-only mode is a step beyond paper trading: the agent prepares real orders through the broker's actual API — real quotes, real suitability checks, real ord…
Read the answer →Updated August 19, 2026What rules apply to retail algorithmic trading?
Your bot trades under the same rulebook as your finger: securities laws against manipulation and fraud, FINRA and exchange rules enforced through your broker, p…
Read the answer →Updated August 16, 2026Are trading bot screenshots real?
Treat every results screenshot as marketing until proven otherwise — even authentic ones are usually cherry-picked, and fabricated ones are trivial to produce. …
Read the answer →Updated August 15, 2026Can you stop a trading bot instantly?
Only if stopping was designed in from the start. A properly built desk stops in one action, from anywhere, in seconds — the switch sits in the order path, so 'o…
Read the answer →Updated August 13, 2026What happens when a trading bot loses money?
The losses are yours — fully, immediately, and with no recourse to the vendor in any legitimate software arrangement. Every real strategy has losing days, so th…
Read the answer →Updated August 26, 2026How much money do you need to try automated trading?
With fractional shares, meaningfully less than most people assume: a bot can run a real, fully-journaled process with tens of dollars in an isolated sub-account…
Read the answer →Updated August 20, 2026Is a trading bot the same as financial advice?
No — and the distinction matters legally and practically. Software that executes rules you chose to run is a tool, like a spreadsheet; personalized recommendati…
Read the answer →Updated August 18, 2026What is a public trade tape?
A public trade tape is a continuously published record of every decision a trading operation makes — entries, exits, passes, and quiet days — visible to anyone,…
Read the answer →Updated August 14, 2026Should a trading bot have its own account?
Yes, always. A bot should live in a dedicated, isolated compartment — a sub-account or separate account — funded with only the amount you have deliberately deci…
Read the answer →Updated August 13, 2026How do trading bot vendors charge, and why does it matter?
The pricing model tells you whose side the vendor is on. Flat license fees and subscriptions keep incentives clean: the vendor is paid for software, not for you…
Read the answer →Updated August 19, 2026How do trading bot scams work?
Most trading bot scams never trade at all — the 'bot' is a story used to collect deposits. The playbook is consistent: manufactured social proof, screenshots of…
Read the answer →Updated August 16, 2026What is a kill switch in automated trading?
A kill switch is a single control that stops all automated trading activity immediately — no queue, no wind-down period, no support ticket. In a well-designed r…
Read the answer →Updated August 24, 2026Can a trading bot promise you results?
No. Markets are uncertain, trading involves risk of loss, and no software — however sophisticated — can promise what an uncertain market will do. Honest vendors…
Read the answer →Updated August 18, 2026What is paper trading mode?
Paper trading mode is a full dress rehearsal: the software watches real market prices and records every decision it would make, but no real order is placed and …
Read the answer →Updated August 24, 2026How do you verify a trading bot's track record?
Demand a continuous, timestamped, public record that includes the losing days — not a screenshot, not a highlight reel, not a backtest. A verifiable track recor…
Read the answer →Updated August 14, 2026What is Robinhood's Agentic Trading API?
Robinhood's Agentic Trading API is the official interface that lets software agents interact with a Robinhood account — inside a dedicated agentic sub-account, …
Read the answer →Updated August 15, 2026Are trading bots legal in the US?
Yes — using software to place trades in your own brokerage account is legal in the United States, and brokers increasingly offer official APIs built for exactly…
Read the answer →Updated August 25, 2026Is an AI trading bot safe?
An AI trading bot is only as safe as its permissions, its account isolation, and your ability to stop it. The software category is not inherently dangerous, but…
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