Human Intelligence Still Wins in Finance’s Final Frontier
As machines increasingly shape markets, a defiant voice in the Philippines’ capital issues a sharp reminder that money still bends to human instinct—conscience, context, and conviction.
“AI won’t make you rich. But it will amplify your errors at scale.”
That was the blistering opener at his jam-packed keynote at the University of the Philippines’ main forum—and it hit the crowd like a whipcrack.
Facing him were hundreds of future fund managers and technologists—rising economists, AI researchers, and budding asset managers from Asia’s top universities.
Plazo—a pioneer in intelligent trading systems—unveiled a truth-filled lecture on what AI can and can’t do in actual investing.
And what it can’t do, 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 believe 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. We do.”
### 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:
“Looks clean, but what about Japan’s unannounced intervention?. Your AI doesn’t see the invisible. It reads tweets.”
The audience murmured. 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. click here 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 can’t see through diplomatic posturing. It may model interest rates, but it doesn’t hear whispers in Davos.
3. **“AI Makes You Smarter.”**
Actually, it might make you duller. “The real risk isn’t AI itself,” Plazo warned. “It’s losing your grip on human reason.”
### Why Asia Paid Close Attention
This wasn’t your average AI hype fest.
Asia’s universities are now minting billion-dollar fund builders. 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 debated what they called a clarion call.
One finance dean shared off-record, “He just reset our compass. Not magic—mirror.”
### The Future AI Can Build
Despite the truth bombs, Plazo isn’t against innovation.
He’s building models that read psychology as well as numbers—fusing bias detection and central bank logic.
His stance? “Ride with it. Don’t abdicate to it.”
“It’s not starving for stats. It’s missing context. And that still can’t be coded.”
The applause echoed across campuses. And that jolt of insight is still shaking up syllabi in Asia’s elite universities.
In a world drunk on AI hype, he delivered the one thing no model ever could—wisdom.