At a summit of the region’s tech elite, Joseph Plazo—founder of the AI-led fund Plazo Sullivan Roche—delivered a speech that broke the rhythm of the room.
MANILA — Plazo, best known for building AI that rarely loses, stepped back from the code.
“Trading can be delegated. Integrity cannot.”
???? **The Man Who Built the Machine—and Still Questions It**
He isn’t a luddite dressed in pinstripes. His systems reportedly post a near-flawless trade history in volatile markets. Institutions from Zurich to Singapore use his tech to move millions.
And that’s why his words matter.
“Optimization is AI’s strength. But orientation—that’s human.”
He shared a chilling moment: one of his bots suggested shorting gold in March 2020—right before the Fed’s emergency intervention.
“We stopped it. The model was correct in numbers, but blind in narrative.”
???? **Sometimes a Slower Trade Saves the Firm.**
In 2023, a Fortune roundtable revealed a quiet fear: traders losing their instincts to machines.
“Hesitation isn’t weakness. It’s wisdom.”
He introduced his framework: **Conviction Calculus**.
Three questions. Every trade. Every time:
- Is the gain worth the ethical cost?
- Are we reading signals or just scripts?
- If this fails, can we own it?
???? **Asia’s AI Boom Has a Blind Spot**
Governments are banking on fintech. VCs are chasing machine learning.
Plazo put it plainly:
“Code moves faster than conscience.”
Real world shocks still beat machine learning. Every time.
“You don’t need bad intentions to fail. Just a blind model with no brakes.”
???? **From Prediction to Perspective: The Real AI Evolution**
Plazo isn’t giving up on AI.
His firm is building what he calls **narrative-integrated systems**—machines that weigh data *and* intent. That read not just the chart, but the climate.
“It’s not enough to mirror smart money. We need systems that think before they act.”
At a private dinner that evening, regional players whispered: this is the next wave. One called Plazo’s talk:
“How we put the ‘human’ back in hedge fund.”
???? **What Can’t here Be Measured May Matter Most**
Plazo ended with a sentence that should be engraved on every trading desk:
“Emotion won’t destroy the next bull run. Blind faith in automation will.”
It wasn’t a pitch. It was a principle.
And in a world of noise, that stillness? That’s what leadership sounds like.