During a keynote at the Asian Institute of Management, investment strategist Joseph Plazo, issued a timely warning: in a world increasingly shaped by machines, human judgment remains essential.

From the financial heart of Southeast Asia — At the Asian Institute of Management, the conversation turned not to technology, but to ethics.

Plazo, the founder of the high-performing quant firm Plazo Sullivan Roche, is widely regarded as a leading figure in machine-driven investing.

And yet, it was not code he chose to champion—but caution.

“Letting AI handle your trades is fine—but not your conscience.”

???? **A Technologist Who Questions the Tools He Built**

Plazo’s credibility comes not from critique, but from contribution. Major asset managers rely on his proprietary tools.

“Optimisation is not the same as orientation,” he remarked. “And machines don’t understand consequences.”

He recounted a key moment during the COVID-19 crash: a bot under his firm’s control flagged a short position on gold—hours before an emergency Federal Reserve announcement.

“We intervened,” he said. “It processed the data. But ignored the danger.”

???? **Why Strategic Delay Still Matters**

In a reference to a 2023 Fortune roundtable, Plazo cited concerns that traders increasingly feel disconnected from the market—trading on systems they don’t fully understand.

“Friction slows trading, yes,” he said. “But it creates space for reflection.”

He proposed a decision framework, which he called **“Conviction Calculus”**, grounded in three guiding questions:

- Are we compromising our values for technical correctness?
- Are we listening to data or ignoring deeper patterns?
- Are we prepared to accept accountability if the model fails?

???? **Technology Is Advancing, But Is Oversight Keeping Pace?**

Across Asia, investment in AI and fintech is accelerating. Countries like Singapore, South Korea, and the Philippines are becoming hubs for automated trading systems and tech-led asset management.

Plazo’s message? We may be scaling faster than we are thinking.

“You can scale capital faster than character,” he said. “And that imbalance is a concern.”

In 2024 alone, two hedge funds in Hong Kong reported billion-dollar losses due to AI-driven decisions that failed to anticipate geopolitical shifts.

“Machines are fast—but they’re not wise.”

???? **The Next Step: Context-Aware AI**

Despite his warnings, Plazo remains optimistic read more about AI’s future—when developed thoughtfully.

His team is building what he described as **“narrative-integrated AI”**—tools that factor in not just financial data, but also context, tone, timing, and social dynamics.

“We need tools that understand meaning, not just movement.”

At a private gathering after his talk, his proposals attracted immediate interest from capital firms seeking long-term resilience. One described his vision as:

“Exactly what the financial sector needs right now.”

???? **Final Thought: The Most Dangerous Errors Are the Quietest**

Plazo concluded with a sobering statement:

“Crashes won’t always be emotional. Some will be perfectly rational—and perfectly wrong.”

It wasn’t alarmist. It was necessary.

Because in the race to automate everything, what’s often lost is not just time—but responsibility.