During a keynote at the Asian Institute of Management, Joseph Plazo, shared a powerful reminder: in a world increasingly shaped by machines, values cannot be outsourced.

PHILIPPINES — Inside the lecture hall of a leading business school, what began as a discussion on AI became a deeper debate on accountability.

Plazo, the founder of the high-performing quant firm Plazo Sullivan Roche, has developed trading algorithms with a documented 99% win rate.

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

“If you allow machines to manage your portfolio,” he said, “ensure they reflect your values, not just your objectives.”

???? **One of AI’s Leading Voices Urges Balance, Not Blind Faith**

Plazo’s credibility comes not from critique, but from contribution. His systems are used by institutional investors across Europe and Asia.

“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 read the signals. But not the situation.”

???? **Instinct Cannot Be Replaced by Speed Alone**

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.

“Deliberation can be the difference between a mistake and a saved reputation.”

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

- Is this trade consistent with our ethical code?
- Does traditional market intelligence support the trade?
- 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 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 here 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:

“A timely model for responsible innovation.”

???? **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.