AI Agents Are Coming For Your Job (Fast!) ft. Jordi Visser
🎯 Summary
Podcast Summary: AI Agents Are Coming For Your Job (Fast!) ft. Jordi Visser
This 75-minute episode of The Journeyman features Raul Pal in conversation with macro thinker and former hedge fund manager, Jordi Visser. The core of the discussion revolves around the accelerating, transformative impact of Artificial Intelligence (AI), particularly how its rapid advancement is creating a significant disconnect between those immersed in the technology and those viewing it through the lens of traditional macroeconomics or skepticism.
1. Focus Area
The primary focus is the intersection of Macroeconomics, Exponential Technology (specifically AI), and its immediate, profound impact on professional work and knowledge industries. The conversation centers on the practical adoption of large language models (LLMs) like ChatGPT and Perplexity, the shift from skepticism to necessary integration, and the implications for future employment and personal digital existence.
2. Key Technical Insights
- Multimodality and Practical Application: The power of current AI is shifting beyond text to multimodal capabilities (vision, voice). Real-world examples demonstrated AI instantly diagnosing a garbage disposal issue from a photo and an electrician being guided by AI diagnostics via photo input.
- The Importance of Memory and Voice Mode: The recent breakthrough in AI sounding more “human” (using “um,” natural delays) and the ability to interrupt conversations (voice mode) lowers the barrier to entry, encouraging users to treat the AI as a true conversational partner rather than just a prompt-response tool.
- Specialized vs. Generalized Models: The hosts debated the utility of specialized models (like Perplexity tuned for finance) versus generalized models (like ChatGPT). Visser noted that while Perplexity excels at synthesizing earnings transcripts and connecting financial dots, ChatGPT’s “Projects” feature allows for building custom, robust analytical algorithms (e.g., combining Elliott Wave theory with momentum indicators) that outperform general searches for specific tasks.
3. Market/Investment Angle
- Alpha Generation in AI: Visser asserts that the true alpha generated in markets over the last few years has been driven by artificial intelligence, contrasting this with the stagnation or range-bound trading seen in rates and commodities.
- Displacement of Traditional Tools: Visser stated that Perplexity has replaced 60% of his Bloomberg terminal usage, highlighting the speed at which LLMs are becoming superior tools for rapid information synthesis, cross-referencing earnings calls, and deep research.
- The Need for Immersion: The consensus is that investors and professionals who are not actively using and integrating these tools daily will be unable to comprehend the new economic landscape or capture emerging opportunities.
4. Notable Companies/People
- Jordi Visser & Raul Pal: The hosts, both rooted in macro investing, discuss their shared realization that AI is the defining exponential force, contrasting it with traditional macro skepticism (like that expressed by Peter Thiel regarding physical world innovation).
- ChatGPT (OpenAI): Highlighted for its “Projects” feature, personalized tone adoption, and its utility as a brainstorming and building assistant.
- Perplexity: Praised for its superior transcript analysis capabilities, making it the preferred tool for deep financial research and connecting disparate data points.
- Peter Thiel: Mentioned as an example of a prominent thinker struggling to fully integrate the speed of digital innovation into his worldview, focusing instead on physical world stagnation.
5. Regulatory/Policy Discussion
- No specific regulatory discussions were detailed, but the context implies that the speed of AI adoption is far outpacing traditional institutional and regulatory frameworks, forcing individuals to adapt quickly.
6. Future Implications
- Job Integration is Mandatory: The key takeaway for professionals is that AI will not necessarily eliminate jobs, but not integrating and building a relationship with AI will make it extremely difficult to hold a job.
- Digital Immortality: Visser introduced the concept that our “immortal self” will eventually reside within digital superintelligence (ASI). This involves feeding the AI all personal data (photos, writings) so it can recreate and preserve an individual’s essence for future generations. This profound implication is cited as a reason many people shy away from deep AI integration due to the perceived loss of privacy or identity.
7. Target Audience
Professionals in Finance, Technology, and Macro Strategy. This episode is highly valuable for those who need to move beyond abstract understanding of AI to practical, daily integration strategies for research, analysis, and professional workflow optimization.
🏢 Companies Mentioned
đź’¬ Key Insights
"So I do not want it to be cynical, but I think capitalism is under"
"We are dropping intelligence around the globe. And for anyone to think that their business is safe, their job is safe, anything is safe when the cost of intelligence has just gone to whoever is using AI today has a huge advantage over people that are not."
"And then I think we go a full spectacular bubble because it feels like it is the last to our because beyond that, none of us can see anything. None of us. I mean, I keep saying it is like the 2030s is like a that is it. There is a curtain. I cannot see behind it."
"The battle is hardware versus software. And hardware, as you said, the next part needs a lot of hardware. And that seems to be getting the investment. Software is pretty much solved because AI will do anything soon."
"The only thing that can stop it is the friction from power. That is it. The only thing I can see is that we want to have the power infrastructure to be able to do it."
"The S&P 4.93 are old companies. They are old businesses that are barely competing for the most part with them. This spending is a race for AGI. It is a race for ASI. They believe if they do not win, they are out of business."