In a gathering of AI developers, analysts, and traders, Joseph Plazo—founder of the algorithmic trading firm Plazo Sullivan Roche—offered an unusual message: slow down.
MANILA — Plazo didn’t talk about speed or scale.
“If you hand over your portfolio to a machine,” he said, “you must ask: does it reflect your ethics—or just your ambitions?”
???? **The Man Behind the Model—Now Questioning Its Impact**
He isn’t speaking from the sidelines. His firm’s AI systems have posted a 99% win rate across key timeframes and are in use by institutional clients across Europe and Asia.
And yet, his concern is clear: accuracy means little without accountability.
“AI can optimise a mistake to perfection if no one stops it.”
He shared a case from the early days of the pandemic. One of his firm’s bots flagged a short on gold just before the U.S. Federal Reserve issued an emergency policy shift.
“We overrode it. It was a machine doing math, not reading history.”
???? **When Pausing Is a Form of Leadership**
Traders are trained to move quickly—too quickly.
“Friction is not failure,” Plazo told the audience. “It is the space where judgment lives.”
Plazo introduced a framework he calls **“Conviction Calculus”**—three questions that must be asked before executing an AI recommendation:
- Are we outsourcing our ethics to an equation?
- Have we cross-checked this with human knowledge—not just system signals?
- Will anyone say, ‘This was my call,’ or just point at the machine?
???? **The Bigger Picture: Asia’s Tech Acceleration and the Governance Gap**
Across Asia, nations are investing heavily in fintech and AI-driven innovation. From Singapore to South Korea, the push toward automation is framed as economic strategy.
But Plazo’s question cuts deeper: “Are we building intelligence without wisdom?”
He referenced multiple AI-driven losses in the past year.
“No one made a mistake. But no one questioned the machine either.”
???? **A New Path: Machines That Listen as Well as Compute**
Plazo is not anti-AI. He’s pro-responsibility.
His firm is developing what he calls **“narrative-integrated AI”**—models that factor in geopolitics, tone, and social context alongside market data.
“Machines that don’t just predict, but understand.”
At a private dinner after the event, multiple venture capital leaders discussed collaborations.
One investor called Plazo’s talk:
“A reminder that the tools click here we build still need human hands at the wheel.”
???? **The Collapse That Could Begin in Silence**
Plazo ended with a thought that may echo across boardrooms:
“We won’t be victims of chaos—but of unchecked confidence.”
Not a warning against AI—but a demand for wisdom to go with it.
Because when machines take over the trades, conscience cannot be coded out.