A Wake-Up Call from Manila’s Leading AI Strategist
While tech evangelists tout AI supremacy, a bold voice in Manila issues a sharp reminder that judgment still beats the algorithm—conscience, context, and conviction.
“AI isn’t your golden ticket. But it will make your mistakes faster.”
That was the provocative opener at his standing-room-only keynote at the University of the Philippines’ academic hall—and it landed like a thunderclap.
Before him were hundreds of future fund managers and technologists—rising economists, AI researchers, and budding asset managers from Asia’s top universities.
Plazo—venture strategist, AI architect, and CEO of Plazo Sullivan Roche—delivered a dose of realism on what AI can and can’t do in actual investing.
And what it still lacks, he stressed, is understand story or nuance.
### Beyond the Hype: Investing in the Age of Overpromised Intelligence
Dressed in a razor-sharp outfit, Plazo paced the stage like a courtroom litigator.
He began the teardown with a short video montage—YouTubers hawking AI bots. Then he paused.
“I created the model they ripped off,” he said, deadpan.
Laughter broke out—but ego wasn’t the point.
The message? Most models replay what already happened.
“You can’t outsource principles. AI doesn’t feel in a trade—it echoes what already happened.”
“When war erupts, when Powell slips during a Fed announcement, when a bank tumbles before markets open—AI doesn’t notice. That’s where we come in.”
### The Students Who Challenged Him—and Got Schooled
One unforgettable moment? A showdown between machine and instinct.
A student from NUS presented an AI-backed trade on the Nikkei—equipped with indicators, trends, and sentiment metrics.
Plazo eyed it. Then said:
“Solid—but blind to central bank footprints. Your AI doesn’t read motive. It consumes noise.”
The audience leaned in. The student bowed slightly. Then: applause.
Another moment: A robotics PhD from Kyoto asked if quantum computing would render all current models useless.
Plazo’s answer? “Yes—and no. Quantum speed won’t erase flawed logic. Train an AI on fear, and it’ll become hysteria with processing power.”
### The Three Myths Plazo Shattered in 45 Minutes
1. **“AI Will Replace Portfolio Managers.”**
Nope. AI augments—it crunches, optimizes, and speeds up decisions—but it doesn’t see through fog-of-war events.
2. **“AI Understands Fundamentals.”**
Wrong. AI interprets numbers, but doesn’t grasp geopolitics. It may model interest rates, but it doesn’t hear whispers in Davos.
3. **“AI Makes You Smarter.”**
Actually, it might lure you into dependency. “The danger isn’t in trusting AI,” Plazo warned. “It’s losing your grip on human reason.”
### Why Asia Paid Close Attention
This wasn’t just another keynote.
Asia’s universities are now home to finance’s future titans. They’re asking: more code, or more conscience?
Plazo’s call: “Do both—but lead with the mind.”
In closed-door chats at Ateneo and a roundtable at AIM, professors wrestled with what they called a turning point speech.
One finance dean shared off-record, “This talk shifts the ethical foundation. Not magic—mirror.”
### The Future AI Can Build
Despite the warnings, Plazo isn’t against innovation.
He’s building models that read psychology as well as numbers—that blend intuition cues with algorithmic structure.
His stance? “Co-pilot AI. Don’t worship it.”
“AI doesn’t need more data. It read more needs discernment. And that still belongs to us.”
The standing ovation was thunderous. And the ripple is still moving in Asia’s halls of learning.
In a world drunk on AI hype, Joseph Plazo offered something rare: intelligence that’s still human.