What AI Can’t Replace:
What AI Can’t Replace:
Blog Article
Human Intelligence Still Wins in Finance’s Final Frontier
While tech evangelists tout AI supremacy, a defiant voice in Manila reminds us 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—a pioneer in intelligent trading systems—unveiled a truth-filled lecture on what AI offers—and where it falls short in live-market investing.
And what it can’t do, he stressed, is replace your instinct.
### Beyond the Hype: Investing in the Age of Overpromised Intelligence
Dressed in a razor-sharp outfit, Plazo moved like a cross between preacher and prosecutor.
He began the teardown with a short video montage—clips of online traders pushing miracle machines. Then he paused.
“I created the model they ripped off,” he said, matter-of-fact.
Laughter broke out—but that wasn’t the punchline.
The message? Most models replay what already happened.
“You can’t outsource principles. AI doesn’t believe in a trade—it mirrors 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 battle of brains and bots.
A student from NUS presented an AI-backed trade on the Nikkei—technically solid, sentiment-scanned, and data-rich.
Plazo studied 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 grinned. 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. Faster chips won’t purge panic from data. Train an AI on fear, and it’ll become panic on steroids.”
### The Three Myths Plazo Shattered in 45 Minutes
1. **“AI Will Replace Portfolio Managers.”**
Nope. AI supports—it crunches, optimizes, and speeds up decisions—but it doesn’t replace gut instinct.
2. **“AI Understands Fundamentals.”**
Wrong. AI interprets numbers, but can’t see through diplomatic posturing. It may model interest rates, website but it can’t predict a Strait of Hormuz conflict.
3. **“AI Makes You Smarter.”**
Actually, it might make you duller. “The real risk isn’t AI itself,” Plazo warned. “It’s deskilling ourselves at scale.”
### 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? “Co-pilot AI. Don’t worship it.”
“AI doesn’t need more data. It 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.