Speaker 0:
joining me Now at the Optimum Investment Group annual summit. Graeme Codrington,

Speaker 0:
Chief executive officer of Today, Tomorrow Global Welcome. Thank you.

Speaker 1:
Nice to be with you.

Speaker 0:
So, Graham, you put forward an incredible presentation, particularly on artificial intelligence and the way that chat G BT might be shaping the future of tomorrow. What opportunities does this present in the investment sphere, as well as in some of the new innovation and the themes that are shaping for the future?

Speaker 1:
So obviously the technology of the year, if you like at the moment for 2023 is this chat GP t. And I think there's obviously a lot of buzz around it. But the behind that is the real news chat GP T is just the little piece everybody's been exposed to, but machine learning, Big Data Analytics, Predictive analytics, that's the news. That's what's actually going on. And what that basically means is that we have now access to

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much more data than any single human being can physically deal with, and we've got the ability to look for patterns in that data. And then, out of those patterns, we've now added this extra layer that a computer can actually make meaning of it. So in the past, it's been the actuaries and the guys who are able to look at an Excel spreadsheet, and it makes sense to them.

Speaker 1:
They've been they've had the power. Now what happens is that that power is freely available to anybody. And so, in an investment space, uh, obviously the easy way to look at it is it just helps people to make better decisions. Uh, not better decisions, but better research. So you don't have to wait for the research investment expert to do their work. You can go and ask Chatty G BT. Tell me about this company. Tell me about that stock.

Speaker 1:
Um, give me a list of the 10 stocks that have moved the most in in the last month, and then you'll get a fairly accurate list. What you then can do is get the A i machine to analyse data the way that a professional investor would. You know somebody whose job it is, they've got all the training

Speaker 1:
to look at. The graphs, look at the patterns, and it's only the final piece of the puzzle where a a professional fund manager is going to then make that choice because you end up with a list of options. You've got to weigh up those options and a I can't do that for you. It's not actually artificial intelligence. It's more intelligent assistance. And that maybe helps people. It's not a I, it's I A.

Speaker 1:
But I A is hugely valuable and I think will change the investing world dramatically,

Speaker 0:
absolutely, and perhaps just bringing in an element of efficiency within the decision making process. I think that there's just been a fear, perhaps that a I might be replacing

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humans to a certain degree. I

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don't think that a I will replace uh, jobs, but I think that people who use a I will replace people who don't and and I think that's what people need to understand. So again, it's not a I, it's I A and so what each of us needs to be doing wherever we find ourselves in our jobs, our careers, our industries, is to say What assistance could I get from a I so I don't see it as competition

Speaker 1:
and I don't see it as a threat, but I see it as a tool and then how do I incorporate this tool? I think in the investment space in particular, maybe even months from now, but certainly years from now. Uh, you're going to have savvy investors who say, I'm not going to use your company if you are not using a I

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to help you make decisions because then I'm suspicious that it's all done on your gut reaction on your emotions or whatever, and you're not using the best tools available. I think the same will be true in education. I think the same will be true in Medical World. We once we've got overcome this initial

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sort of response that people have to a new technology. I think people will see the benefit and value, and they'll want to incorporate it.

Speaker 0:
Absolutely. So do you think the Globe or South Africans in general, understand the capability of what this new technology brings? And then again, what opportunity does it present for South Africa as an emerging nation?

Speaker 1:
Well, look, the wonderful thing for an emerging nation is that it allows us to leapfrog instead of catching up. So it it's not as if this technology is only available to companies in America because only Americans can afford the supercomputer size that you need. You know, that was the old vision that if you weren't Google or you weren't Microsoft, you didn't have the actual, uh, space or the technology available that you can do this on your phone now.

Speaker 1:
Um, and in South Africa, Yeah. I mean, I in my home in Johannesburg. I've got a one gigabyte fibre line, Um, which is, you know, as good as you can get and maybe even better than you can get in many parts of the world. So we mustn't have this view as South Africans that we're behind. We always have to catch up. Uh, we can play in this wonderful new world in real time. And we should,

Speaker 1:
um I also think that we actually have an advantage in South Africa because, um, being in a developing economy, there's a little bit more leeway in the regulatory framework. Now, here I have to be slightly careful in how I frame this, because regulations are there for a reason, and especially in financial services areas, they're valuable. But on the other hand, you know, if you're a Swiss bank, you've got no place to move no wiggle room at all.

Speaker 1:
Whereas in South Africa, where we've how do you bank the unbanked? How do you make sure that people in rural environments also have access to investing platforms? You've got to have a bit more flexibility and that we actually do. And, um so again, we shouldn't take advantage of that and abuse that. But it does breed more innovation and creativity,

Speaker 1:
Which is why I think South African banks are amongst the best in the world. Often rated that way. I think, uh, often innovation comes out of South Africa, and we should be proud of that.

Speaker 0:
Absolutely. Well, on that note, Graham, thank you very much for your time. We appreciate your insights. My pleasure.

Speaker 1:
Thank you.