Look, I need to be honest with you.
I sat down here to write about the economy, markets, something that would make your money grow or at least protect you from losing what you've got. I opened Google News on the "Economy" tab. And what popped up?
Pokémon Winds & Waves on Switch 2.
That's right. A game about colorful critters that shoot lightning from their mouths showed up in my curated economic news feed. And the content? There wasn't even any content — it was a Google cookie consent page. Literally. The article is a wall of "Accept all" and "Reject all" in 47 different languages.
Welcome to the state of financial information in 2025.
The Algorithm Is the New Investment Guru
You know that bank analyst who shows up on TV in an expensive suit and talks for 8 minutes without saying absolutely anything? Yeah. Google News's algorithm has become the digital version of that guy.
The machine decided that Pokémon on Switch 2 is relevant for people following the economy. And why? Because Nintendo is a publicly traded company? Because the gaming industry moves more money than Hollywood? Maybe. But the real reason is simpler and more disturbing: nobody is curating a damn thing.
It's all automated. It's all algorithms. It's all click bias. And people consume it thinking they're staying informed.
Nassim Taleb has a quote that fits here like a glove: "The problem with experts is they don't know what they don't know." The algorithm isn't even an expert — it's a statistical parrot that repeats whatever generates engagement.
Nintendo as a (Real) Economic Barometer
Now, if we want to be fair — and I try to be, even when the circus doesn't deserve it — there actually is an economic story behind Switch 2 and the new Pokémon.
Nintendo (TYO: 7974) is a money-printing machine. The original Switch sold over 140 million units. The Pokémon franchise is the biggest media franchise on the planet, valued at over $150 billion in cumulative revenue. Bigger than Star Wars. Bigger than Marvel. Bigger than the GDP of entire countries.
When Nintendo announces a new console with a launch Pokémon title, it ripples through supply chains in Asia, moves semiconductor stocks, and shakes up revenue projections for retailers worldwide.
Now that would be an economic story.
But that's not what Google News delivered. It delivered a screenshot gallery and a wall of cookies. It's like going to the butcher shop for a ribeye and the guy hands you a photo of the cow.
The Bigger Problem: You're Consuming Informational Garbage
Here's the punch in the face you didn't ask for but need to take:
If your strategy for staying informed about markets depends on your Google feed, Twitter, or any algorithmic curation — you're sailing without a compass in open water.
The algorithm doesn't want to inform you. It wants to keep you scrolling. It wants your eyes glued to the screen. It wants you to click. If Pokémon generates more clicks than the Fed's interest rate decision, guess what's going to show up in your economy tab?
Warren Buffett reads annual reports. Charlie Munger read biographies. Bruce Kovner studied history. None of them sat there scrolling a feed waiting for a machine to decide what was important.
Information curation is a financial survival skill. Just as important as knowing how to read a balance sheet or understanding what the Federal Reserve is doing with interest rates.
So Here's the Question
How many financial decisions have you made — or failed to make — based on information an algorithm chose for you?
How many times did you think you were "in the know" about the market because you skimmed some headlines on your phone between rounds of... Pokémon?
Pikachu isn't going to pay your bills. And Google is not your financial advisor.
Wake the hell up.
