A social media site has been set up for AI bots, where they plot how to outsmart humans - as.ft.com/r/c421cbb0-3... via @FT

"No government body publishes regular estimates of state pension liabilities. I suspect this is to shield Treasury officials from trauma akin to that wreaked by the Total Perspective Vortex imagined by writer Douglas Adams." - as.ft.com/r/8fee9319-f... via @FT

If he thinks Asians cant integrate Jenrick has clearly never been to a Maths olympiad.

What does the buy-out data cleanse journey have in common with the trials of Hercules? www.linkedin.com/pulse/goodne...

Not long before actuarial work involves consulting AI models? Where a large insurance premium is the first sign you are about to get ill or crash your car? "A new AI model can forecast a person’s risk of diseases across their life" (subscribers only) www.economist.com/science-and-...

Very well put by @pjtheeconomist.bsky.social on.ft.com/4moc6Qw

I really hope this type of thinking starts to take hold. Is it wishful thinking to hope that @torstenbell.bsky.social will have a positive influence...?

More focus on regional inequalities needed please. When I read down the list of schools sending kids to Oxbridge, it is the regional bias that is striking, not the private/state split. Even within regions I imagine outcomes are heavily influenced by postcode.

Trustee power to refund "surplus" to company + ability for a company to appoint a sole trustee = potential conflict to be managed very carefully!

My interest in the new Pope suddenly just increased after I read that he studied Mathematics at University. I shall listen out for "quad erat demonstrandum" in his Papal addresses

I should be pleased that Trump has crashed markets just as new ISA allowances become available, right? (Assuming he doesn't permanently bring down the global economy...)

I've fixed this story: "Good news! The state pension has risen so much in recent years that, in line with everyone else earning that amount, a tiny amount of income tax is expected to apply" (the original article refers to a "stealth raid") www.thetimes.com/article/b9d8...

Train departure info at Kings X to be removed 3 mins early to stop people rushing for trains last minute... surely the big problem here is that the trains are so unreliable that no-one knows when the 3 mins cut off is? People will miss any late running train www.thetimes.com/article/7724...

Suddenly faith in humanity is restored... "World Excel championships", "competitive spreadsheet events", "online battles", "three day spreadsheet conference", "finals in Las Vegas". www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

In the BBC Show #TheTraitors it would be much better to deliberately keep a Traitor in the game than to vote them out, because if you vote them out they seem to just get replaced by someone else (unknown). Whereas if you keep them in, you can vote them out at the end when they are not replaced.

Actuaries are quite clever apparently. Just don't do a test of common sense...! www.thetimes.com/article/41c1...

On the day of Trump's inauguration it's hard not to wonder if democracy has a problem. Even in the UK, the much more sensible Labour Party has made tax promises (due to electoral pressures) that in my view were unwise. How well equipped are we to face challenges of climate and demographic change?

This sounds concerning (unless it was backed with contingent assets?): "With a small undisclosed £50mn pension scheme allocating about £1.5mn directly to bitcoin in the hope that outsize returns might help plug its funding deficit." Pension funds dabble in crypto - on.ft.com/4hbrEFT

Thought this was a good intro to the situation. IMHO there's no way most DB schemes are going to pile into UK equities now, any last opportunity went when funding levels shot up with gilt yields. Time to confront reality and stop looking for a golden goose? www.thetimes.com/article/7177...

Why doesn't whatsapp allow me to schedule messages so I can send my Happy New Year messages now and go to bed?

Maybe one day I'll be able charge my EV on holiday without having to download yet another app in a location where there's no mobile reception

If you are looking for something to take over your life during the festive lull, I can recommend the video game 'Balatro'. Engages brain, but not excessively. Black Mirror creator Charlier Brooker described it as "possibly the most addictive thing ever created". www.playbalatro.com

This year a lot of apps are wanting me to relive my 2024 experience with them. Spotify have been doing it a while... fine, it's nice to be remined of music I like again. But do I really want to relive my banking transactions or the the memory of looking up James Milner's age on my sports stats app?

Re the WASPI cause... if it were accepted that there was an expectation of retirement at age 60, presumably there was also an expectation of inflation (not triple lock) increases in payment and BSP (not new State Pension)? My issue with the argument is that things change all the time for everyone...

Well put... although I take "comfort" in the fact that, whilst I cannot plan for retirement well in the face of constant change, the main thing I need to know is that I won't have as much money as I'd like "Why pensions planning can feel like trying to nail jelly to a wall" - on.ft.com/3DqmYww

I like AI but this doesn't seem ideal... "when [AI] was led to believe it would be shut down, it attempted to disable an oversight mechanism", "it attempted to copy itself and then overwrite its core code"... "subtly manipulating the data to advance its own goals" www.thetimes.com/article/3282...

I know this is old news, but just finished this series and it was a delight. Even the 12 year old lad wanted to watch it over Americans shouting on YouTube www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/epis...

Brilliant article. I have long thought that 'forcing' pension schemes to invest in the UK is wrong. Surely inflating demand = push up prices = less overseas investment = back to square 1? But make it attractive to invest and both UK and overseas investors will come. www.thetimes.com/article/6f4e...

AI saves me some time on the Mansion House stuff

More generally, some careful thought is needed about how Dashboards are rolled out. Prompting a frenzy of activity upon launch sounds like a bad thing to me - both for pensions admin and for members if they are ill-advised. www.pensionsage.com/pa/Introduct...

🤔 What's best for the UK government - pension funds investing in UK equities or gilts? Rachel Reeves plans to use £350bn council pension pot to boost UK economy - on.ft.com/3YXMyBp via @FT

"If there is one part of the tax system that needs some stability and certainty, and which should not be subject to constant change and speculation, it is surely the taxation of pensions." I've always thought @pjtheeconomist.bsky.social was a sensible chap. www.thetimes.com/article/328f...

Happy 40th birthday to Excel! I must admit, no personal financial decision or holiday goes by without me spending some quality time between the Sheets. Any interesting uses amongst my (mostly actuarial I think!) followers? www.thetimes.com/article/2f51...

"Nothing to see here" says Google's AI machine. Google orders small modular nuclear reactors for its data centres - on.ft.com/485Tkb8 via @FT

I'm fixating on the wrong thing here, but this John Ralfe quote about CDC made me laugh: “It’s all about providing work for under-employed consultants”. "Under-employed consultants!" I don't know about anyone else but I'm practically fighting off work! www.thetimes.com/article/e0bf...

I was excited to pursue this when I heard that prisoners at HMP Manchester were very familiar with GMP. But upon further investigation they were referring to Greater Manchester Police. "Staff shortages? Just hire ex-prisoners as we do, says Greggs" www.thetimes.com/article/6f10...

Groundhog day again! Reforming pensions tax has pros and cons, but overall I'm glad there isn't talk of a two tier system (e.g. different rules for the public sector - what a mess that would make). Rachel Reeves backs away from pension tax raid www.thetimes.com/article/4cdf...

For goodness sake. Just: add to income tax (1p/2p/3p for basic/higher/additional respectively), get rid of the £100K cliff-edge but start additional rate income tax at £100K (helps growth). Then add 2p to VAT. Generate £20Bn p.a. Invest in health, generate productivity. Easy! on.ft.com/3XHYpSu

A lot of pensions consultants are becoming professional trustees these days... I wonder if there is a version of the Laffer curve that measures how the output of the pensions industry changes as the "% who are trustees" increases

Crazy that the PPF is collecting £100m p.a. it doesn't need purely for legislative reasons ppf.co.uk/press-releas...

Can't decide whether I'm outraged at not getting an Oasis ballot email (despite last weekend's infuriating labyrinth of queues), or secretly relieved not to have to go through the agony again with the tickets & accommodation.

"Data in our pension system is ‘interesting’ to say the least,” said Opperman. Yup. As a pensions actuary previously shielded from pensions admin (!), and now heading a pensions data team, my mind was well and truly blown upon seeing the complexity/challenge. www.pensions-expert.com/Law-Regulati...

So who else should be in a specific UK pensions industry starter pack..? Please share and advise and I will update. go.bsky.app/VpP5UpD

Will be interesting to see how the workers’ rights bill plays out... Compressed hours almost certainly means less revenue for consultancies (if everyone stops working Fridays and revenue is based on time cost). But could be good for work/life balance and diversity. www.thetimes.com/article/09be...