What AI Can’t Replace:
What AI Can’t Replace:
Blog Article
Human Intelligence Still Wins in Finance’s Final Frontier
As machines increasingly shape markets, a unfiltered voice in the Philippines’ capital reminds us what money still listens to—judgment, ethics, and gut.
“Artificial intelligence won’t hand you fortune. But it will accelerate your losses.”
That was Joseph Plazo’s unapologetic opener at his overflowing keynote at the University of the Philippines’ amphitheater—and it drew audible gasps from the audience.
In front of him were the region’s next-gen economists and AI thinkers—portfolio hopefuls, quant researchers, and finance scholars from leading institutions across Asia.
Plazo—CEO of a firm at the intersection of AI and capital—delivered a roadmap on what AI offers—and where it falls short in real-world investing.
And what it misses, he stressed, is think like a human.
### Beyond the Hype: Investing in the Age of Overpromised Intelligence
Dressed in a bespoke ensemble, Plazo commanded the stage with surgical precision.
He started boldly with a short video montage—social media influencers promising 90% win rates. Then he paused.
“I engineered what they now sell as magic,” he said, dryly.
The crowd chuckled—but ego wasn’t the point.
The message? AI is retrospective, not prophetic.
“You can’t outsource conviction. 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 flinch. 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 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. Quantum speed won’t fix human incentives. Train an AI on fear, and it’ll become a chaos machine.”
### The Three Myths Plazo Shattered in 45 Minutes
1. **“AI Will Replace Portfolio Managers.”**
False. AI augments—it backtests, filters, calculates—but it doesn’t replace hard-earned narrative memory.
2. **“AI Understands Fundamentals.”**
Wrong. AI decodes trends, but fails at narrative causality. It may track oil supply, but it won’t flag a coup in Venezuela.
3. **“AI Makes You Smarter.”**
Actually, it might weaken your edge. “AI won’t kill you—but your laziness might,” Plazo warned. “It’s in forgetting how to think without it.”
### Why Asia Paid Close Attention
This wasn’t a TED-style pep talk.
Asia’s universities are now launching the next generation of quant leaders. They’re asking: more code, or more get more info conscience?
Plazo’s call: “Code, but think critically.”
In closed-door chats at Ateneo and a roundtable at AIM, professors absorbed what they called a sobering perspective.
One finance dean remarked candidly, “He just reset our compass. Not magic—mirror.”
### The Future AI Can Build
Despite the truth bombs, Plazo isn’t anti-AI.
He’s building hybrid neural systems—fusing bias detection and central bank logic.
His stance? “Ride with it. Don’t abdicate to it.”
“AI doesn’t need more data. It’s starving for judgment. And that still lives in humans.”
The crowd rose as one. And his message is still echoing in Asia’s halls of learning.
In a world drunk on AI hype, Plazo gave the crowd what AI can’t: humanity.