I sat down to answer the #1 investment question of 2025 – Should I invest in international and emerging markets?
I asked ChatGPT to give me a head start.
So I typed in “Write a blog about why international is outperforming this year”.
What it produced was what I figured it would – International is kicking the U.S’s butt this year because of dollar weakness, increased foreign government spending and rock bottom valuations on international companies.
The (appropriate) headline it gave me was:
“International equities have been outperforming U.S. stocks in 2025, marking a significant shift in global investment trends.”
Then I fat-fingered it and closed my Chrome window.
When I got back in there, I distractedly MIS-typed: “Write a blog about why international has down this year.”
(What I meant to type was “…why international has done well this year.”
And what I got back was:
“International equity markets have faced significant challenges in 2025, leading to underperformance compared to their U.S. counterparts. Several interrelated factors have contributed to this downturn.”
It then gave the exact same reasons why it’s up to why it’s down.
(For the record, there’s only one right answer. International is up 17% this year and the U.S. is up 0.5%.)
This year I’ve gotten a lot of questions (usually from new members) comparing Financial Zen Advice against ChatGPT Advice.
And I’m with them. I definitely ask AI way more than I click blue links these days.
But this was a good reminder to trust, but verify what the robots are telling us.
ChatGPT is a good starting point, but it doesn’t replace a good ‘ol human just yet.
