AI options scanner: plain-English scans, transparent math
By OptionClaws · Updated 2026-09-28
"AI options scanner" can mean two very different things. Some tools use the phrase for a black box: a proprietary model that emits buy or sell signals, a confidence score, or a list of "AI picks" without showing how any of it was produced. OptionClaws means something narrower and easier to check. The scanning itself is deterministic: every trade is enumerated from real option chains, priced with standard option math, and kept or dropped by filters you can read. The AI is the interface. You ask ChatGPT, Claude, Grok, or Claude Code for the trades you want in plain English, the assistant turns that into a scan definition, runs it, and explains the ranked results. This page explains how that split works, why it matters, and what an AI assistant can and cannot do with an options scanner.
Key facts
- The OptionClaws scan engine is deterministic: the same scan on the same data returns the same trades, ranked by a metric you choose.
- The AI assistant is the interface: it turns plain-English requests into scan definitions and explains the results, but it does not decide which trades pass.
- Every result row shows its actual value for each filter the scan applied, so you can see exactly why a trade made the list.
- It works in ChatGPT, Claude, Grok, and Claude Code, and the same scanner runs on the web and in the iOS and Android apps.
- The scanner finds and ranks candidates only: no trade execution, no alerts, no backtesting, and nothing is investment advice.
| Opaque AI signals | OptionClaws | |
|---|---|---|
| What produces the trade list | A proprietary model whose inputs and weights are not disclosed | Filters and option math you can read, applied to real option chains |
| Why a trade appears | Usually a score or a label, such as bullish or high confidence | Its value for every filter and the sort key, shown on the row |
| Same inputs, same output | Not guaranteed | Yes, for the same scan on the same data |
| Role of the AI | Picks the trades | Translates your request into a scan and explains the results |
| Can you change the rules | Rarely | Yes: every filter, threshold, and sort key is editable |
How the scan engine works
OptionClaws enumerates candidate trades for 23 strategies, from covered calls and cash-secured puts to credit spreads, iron condors, straddles, strangles, butterflies, calendars, and diagonals, using option chains refreshed intraday. Each candidate is priced from the quotes on its legs, and its metrics are computed with standard formulas: max profit and max loss from the payoff at expiration, breakevens, return on risk, annualized return, and probability of profit and expected value from a lognormal pricing model using the option's implied volatility.
Filters then keep or drop each candidate. There are more than 40 of them, grouped by the trade (probability of profit, return on risk, max loss, delta, days to expiration), volatility (IV rank), the stock (market cap, sector, RSI, moving averages, 52-week highs, average true range), events (earnings and ex-dividend dates), and liquidity (option volume, bid-ask spread). What survives is sorted by the key you pick and the top rows are returned. There is no hidden score and no model deciding which trades you see.
What the AI assistant actually does
The assistant sits in front of the engine. When you connect OptionClaws to ChatGPT, Claude, Grok, or Claude Code, the assistant gets nine read-only tools: it can list presets and filters, run a preset, run a custom scan, re-run your saved scans, search for a symbol, pull one symbol's option chain with greeks, and check your account status.
- Translation: "iron condors on large caps, max loss under $500, at least a 70% chance of profit" becomes a strategy, a market cap floor, a max loss cap, and a probability filter.
- Explanation: each row reports its value for every filter applied, so the assistant can say why a trade passed and which threshold it barely cleared.
- Follow-up: the assistant can pull the option chain for a result, check the next earnings date, or rerun the scan with one filter changed.
- Comparison: it can line up two or three candidates by max loss, breakeven, and probability and describe the tradeoff in plain language.
Add OptionClaws to your AI assistant
Works in ChatGPT and Claude, on the web, and in the iOS and Android apps. No card needed for the trial.
Why transparent beats opaque for options
An options trade is defined by numbers you can check: what you collect or pay, what you can lose, where you break even, and how likely the model thinks that is. A tool that hides those behind a signal asks you to trust the signal. A scanner that shows them lets you verify every candidate against your own rules and your broker's quote.
It also keeps the AI honest. A language model without data will produce plausible option prices that were never quoted. When the assistant's job is limited to building the scan and reading back real results, the numbers in the answer come from the engine, and you can open the same scan in the web app to see identical output.
Here is an illustrative example with made-up round numbers, not a real result. A cash-secured put scan returns a hypothetical $50 put that pays a $1.00 premium with 30 days to expiration. The row shows the cash reserved ($5,000), a breakeven of $49.00, a return of 2% on the cash for the month, and a model probability of the put expiring worthless. The assistant can annualize that return for comparison, but it should say in the same breath that the stock can fall well below $49, and below that point the loss grows dollar for dollar, up to $4,900 if the stock goes to zero.
Where you can use it
In ChatGPT, add OptionClaws from its listing in ChatGPT and sign in. In Claude, add a custom connector with the MCP server URL. In Grok, create a custom connector at grok.com/connectors. In Claude Code, run the one-line claude mcp add command and sign in with /mcp. All four sign in to your OptionClaws account with OAuth; the steps are on the connect page.
The same scanner, filters, and presets are available without an assistant on the web and in the iOS and Android apps, which is where you build saved scans and a watchlist that the assistant can later run.
What it does not do
OptionClaws is a scanner. It does not place trades, send alerts, backtest strategies, or keep a trade journal, and the AI tools are read-only. Data is refreshed intraday and is a snapshot, not a live feed. Scans through an assistant are limited to 10 per minute and return 15 rows by default, up to 25. Probability of profit is a model estimate, not a prediction, and no result is a recommendation to trade.
Frequently asked questions
- Is OptionClaws an AI trading bot?
- No. It does not trade, and it does not generate buy or sell signals. It is an options scanner with deterministic filters and math; an AI assistant can drive it from chat and explain the results, but every tool is read-only.
- Which AI assistants work with OptionClaws?
- ChatGPT, Claude, Grok, and Claude Code. OptionClaws runs a remote MCP server, so any assistant that supports custom MCP connectors with OAuth can connect to it.
- Does the AI make up the numbers?
- When the assistant uses the OptionClaws tools, the prices and metrics come from the scan engine running on market data refreshed intraday. If an assistant quotes an option price without calling a tool, treat it as unverified.
- Do I need an AI assistant to use the scanner?
- No. The web app and the iOS and Android apps run the same scans with the same filters and presets. The assistant is an optional interface for people who prefer to describe the scan in words.
- How is probability of profit calculated?
- From a lognormal pricing model using the option's implied volatility, the time to expiration, and the trade's breakevens. It estimates the chance the trade finishes with at least a small gain at expiration. It is a model estimate, not a forecast.
- What does it cost?
- New accounts get a 7-day trial with no card required. After that, scans need a subscription; current plans and prices are on the pricing page.
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