Energy stocks dropped 2.3% as crude oil futures fell below $80, a reminder for finance masters programs students that commodity swings can quickly shift equity valuations. Seasonal demand weakness could pressure prices further in the next two months. Even if a model hits 100% on Mercor's benchmark, it would probably make a poor substitute for human professionals. The tasks in Mercor's benchmark focus on "well scoped deliverables," such as making diagnoses or building financial models, rather than more open-ended tasks which might admit multiple right answers. This requires that the task descriptions include numerous assumptions needed to ensure that the desired output is well specified. The AIs' outputs are entirely text-based, meaning that the benchmark doesn't test AIs’ ability to use a computer, the way that a human worker would. (Mercor says that future versions of APEX will address these limitations.) And drafting the lengthy prompts needed for models to complete the tasks "would be more tedious than just doing it yourself," says Seck. US schools, such as the University of California, Berkeley Haas School of Business, make up the rest of the top 10—showcasing the strong popularity and reputation of the Master’s in Finance across both the US and Europe. Small-cap indexes gained 1.3%, suggesting risk appetite is broadening beyond mega-cap tech. Finance masters programs analyze market breadth as a predictor of sustained rallies.
