At a lecture hall in Manila, renowned AI investor Joseph Plazo made a striking distinction on what machines can and cannot do for the economic frontier—and why understanding this may define who wins in tomorrow’s markets.

Tension and curiosity pulsed through the room. Students—some eagerly recording on their phones, others streaming the moment live—waited for a man both celebrated and controversial in AI circles.

“AI will make trades for you,” Plazo began, calm but direct. “But it won’t teach you why to believe in them.”

Over the next sixty minutes, he took the audience from Silicon Valley to Shanghai, intertwining machine logic with human flaws. His central claim: Artificial intelligence is impressive—but it lacks soul.

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Top Students Meet a Tough Truth

Before him sat students and faculty from a multi-nation academic alliance, gathered under a technology consortium.

Many expected a praise-filled keynote of AI's dominance. Plazo had other plans.

“There’s a rising cult of algorithmic faith,” said Prof. Maria Castillo, a respected AI ethicist from the UK. “We need this kind of discomfort in academia.”

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The Machine’s Blindness: Plazo’s Case for Caution

Plazo’s core thesis was check here both simple and unsettling: AI does not grasp nuance.

“AI won’t flinch, but neither will it foresee,” he warned. “It recognizes patterns—but ignores the power structures.”

He cited examples like AI systems freezing during the 2020 pandemic declaration, noting, “Machines were late to the signal. People weren’t.”

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Wisdom in a World of Code

Plazo didn’t argue against AI—but for boundaries.

“AI is the microscope—you choose what to zoom in on,” he said. It analyzes—but lacks awareness.

Students pressed him on AI in news and social chatter, to which Plazo acknowledged: “Of course, it parses language patterns—but it can’t discern hesitation in a policymaker’s tone.”

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Asia Reflects: From Tech Worship to Tech Wisdom

The talk hit hard.

“I used to think AI just needed more data,” said Lee Min-Seo, a finance student from Seoul. “Now I realize it also needs wisdom—and that’s the hard part.”

In a post-talk panel, faculty and entrepreneurs echoed the caution. “These kids speak machine natively—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.