A Wake-Up Call from Manila’s Leading AI Strategist

While tech evangelists tout AI supremacy, a defiant voice in Manila reminds us that judgment still beats the algorithm—judgment, ethics, and gut.

“Artificial intelligence won’t hand you fortune. But it will amplify your errors at scale.”

That was the blistering opener at his jam-packed 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 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 built the system they copied,” he said, dryly.

Laughter followed—but this wasn’t ego.

The message? Most AI is built on hindsight.

“You can’t outsource guts. AI doesn’t carry skin in a trade—it mirrors what already happened.”

“When war unexpectedly explodes, when Powell coughs during a Fed announcement, when a bank implodes overnight—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:

“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. Quantum speed 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.”**
False. AI assists—it backtests, filters, calculates—but it doesn’t replace gut instinct.

2. **“AI Understands Fundamentals.”**
Wrong. AI reads tables, 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 just another keynote.

Asia’s universities are now launching the next generation of quant leaders. They’re asking: more code, or more conscience?

Plazo’s call: “Harness tech, but stay human.”

In closed-door chats at Ateneo and a roundtable at AIM, professors absorbed what they called a sobering perspective.

One finance dean remarked candidly, “Joseph might click here have rebooted our entire AI syllabus. Not magic—mirror.”

### The Future AI Can Build

Despite the critique, Plazo isn’t anti-AI.

He’s building multi-signal trading engines—integrating macro signals and crowd psychology.

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.