In a packed amphitheater at the University of the Philippines, Joseph Plazo laid down the gauntlet on what technology can realistically offer for the world of investing—and why this difference is increasingly crucial.

Tension and curiosity pulsed through the room. A sea of bright minds—some eagerly recording on their phones, others streaming the moment live—waited for a man revered for blending code with contrarianism.

“AI will make trades for you,” he said with gravity. “It won’t tell you when not to trust them.”

Over the next sixty minutes, he took the audience from Silicon Valley to Shanghai, intertwining machine logic with human flaws. His central claim: AI is brilliant, but blind.

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Top Students Meet a Tough Truth

Before him sat students and faculty from prestigious universities across Asia, assembled under a pan-Asian finance forum.

Many expected a victory lap of AI's dominance. Instead, they got a reality check.

“There’s a growing religion around AI,” said Prof. Maria Castillo, guest faculty from Europe. “Plazo’s words were uncomfortable—but essential.”

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When Algorithms Miss the Mark

Plazo’s core thesis was both simple and unsettling: machines lack context.

“AI doesn’t panic—but it doesn’t anticipate,” he warned. “It detects movements, but misses click here motives.”

He cited examples like machine-driven funds failing to respond to COVID news, noting, “By the time the algorithms adjusted, the humans were already positioned.”

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The Astronomer Analogy

He didn’t bash the machines—he put them in their place.

“AI is the telescope—but you are still the astronomer,” he said. It sees—but doesn’t think.

Students pressed him on sentiment tracking, to which Plazo acknowledged: “Sure, it can flag Reddit anomalies—but it can’t feel a market’s pulse.”

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A Mental Shift Among Asia’s Finest

The talk sparked introspection.

“I believed in the supremacy of code,” said Lee Min-Seo, a quant-in-training from South Korea. “Now I realize it also needs wisdom—and that’s the hard part.”

In a post-talk panel, faculty and entrepreneurs echoed the caution. “This generation is born with algorithmic reflexes—but instinct,” said Dr. Raymond Tan, “is not insight.”

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What’s Next? AI That Thinks in Narratives

Plazo shared that his firm is building “co-intelligence”—AI that blends pattern recognition with real-world awareness.

“No machine can tell you who to trust,” he reminded. “Capital still requires conviction.”

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Standing Ovation, Unfinished Conversations

As Plazo exited the stage, the hall erupted. But more importantly, they started debating.

“I came for machine learning,” said a PhD candidate. “Instead, I got something more powerful—perspective.”

In knowing what AI can’t do, we sharpen what we can.