How I Cloned Myself

Last week, I mentioned I was working on creating an AI clone of myself.

This week, I got pretty close to making it a reality.

The GIF above contains my original footage and my AI clone (I’ll share which is which at the end).

Here’s the process on how to do it:

1. Head over to HeyGen

2. Click Avatars > Digital Twin > Get Started

3. Tips for creating a video for the AI to clone you:
   - Make sure you’ve got a still vertical video pointed at your face
   - The video needs to be for 2 minutes
   - It needs to be in a well-lit area (I shot beside a glass window in my house)
   - Do not have your hands in the shot, as it distorts the AI cloning
   - Make sure there is a clear distinction between you and your background

4. Upload your video

   

   I tried uploading some old footage of me, and it didn’t work so make sure you nail the tips above

5. Review the verification process

6. Review your avatar

The avatar I got wasn’t particularly Kiwi, so the work now needs to focus on creating the right voice.

I do now have an AI clone that’s pretty close to how my face looks when I speak, though.

I’ll use ElevenLabs this week to upload a voice recording, then match it with my digital version of Kale, and see where we land.

If you are someone who isn’t confident in front of the camera, this process will save you hours of procrastination or self-judgment about your appearance.

If you are good in front of the camera, don’t waste your time with these extra steps, as you’ll likely be better off just shooting it yourself and hitting the upload button.

(The zoomed-in version B is my AI clone.)

How To Spot The Best Performers In Investing

Last week, I shared my 4-year investment performance on LinkedIn. 

The post caught some attention, and two news outlets reached out for an interview.

One of them said they were interviewing me to show that not all retail investors are “dumb money.”

According to them, the professional end of town likes to think that Mum-and-Dad investors are naive and shouldn’t be trusted with their own capital.

What’s odd about that to me is that it never once occurred to me that professional investors are good at managing money.

Buffett fans learned this lesson years ago.

In 2008, Warren Buffett issued a challenge to the hedge fund industry, which, in his view, charged exorbitant fees for performance that didn’t stack up.

Protégé Partners LLC accepted.

They placed a million-dollar bet: Buffett backed the S&P 500 index fund, while Protégé backed a hand-picked portfolio of hedge funds. Ten years later, Buffett’s simple bet crushed the professionals.

Ted Seides, Protégé’s co-founder, conceded defeat even before the contest officially ended in 2017.

Human nature explains this well.

If you’re truly good at something, you tend to do it for yourself, not for others.

That’s doubly true for investors - we’re doing it to "get rich".

And if someone is genuinely great at it, there's no chance they're sitting on a payroll playing with other people’s money.

Think about it . . . How many people selling investing courses would still be in business if they had to publicly share their returns?

How many professional money managers would there be, if they had to publicly share their returns?

Bugger all.

Before you take financial advice or hand someone your money to manage, the only thing you need to know is their personal investment performance.

And, perhaps unsurprisingly, that’s the one thing most “professional” investors never talk about.