Warren Buffett is buying, Michael Burry is shorting: The AI trade splitting Wall Street
Warren Buffett and Michael Burry are taking opposing stances on the AI boom, highlighting investor uncertainty. Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway has added a major stake in Alphabet, signaling confidence in the AI-driven growth, while Burry shorts Palantir and Nvidia, criticizing Big Tech accounting practices. Their contrasting positions coincide with transitions in their careers and growing debate over whether AI hype is justified or a bubble.
Warren Buffett and Michael Burry, two investors closely watched across global markets, are taking diametrically opposite positions on the artificial intelligence frenzy, setting up a rare, high-stakes clash over whether Silicon Valley’s hottest trade is a once-in-a-generation opportunity or a bubble waiting to burst. Their positions, revealed in recent disclosures and letters, come as concerns about an AI bubble gain mainstream attention while investors continue pouring capital into the sector.
Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway last month unveiled a large new stake in Alphabet, instantly propelling the Google parent into Berkshire Hathaway’s top 10 holdings. The move is widely seen as an endorsement of Alphabet’s heavy AI investments and the market’s view of the company as a frontrunner in the AI race.
The investment comes at a moment of transition for Berkshire. Buffett announced in May that he will step down as CEO at the end of this year, though he will retain his stock, handing the reins to vice chairman Greg Abel after decades at the helm of a company that began as a Nebraska textile mill and grew into one of the most influential conglomerates in American finance.
Burry doubles down on his skepticism
Michael Burry, however, is moving in the opposite direction. The investor who famously profited from betting against the U.S. housing market in 2008 has taken new short positions in Palantir and Nvidia, two of the highest-profile beneficiaries of the AI boom.
He has been particularly critical of accounting practices across Big Tech, arguing that companies “have been systematically increasing the useful lives of chips and servers, for depreciation purposes, as they invest hundreds of billions of dollars in graphics chips with accelerating planned obsolescence.”
Burry is also in a period of transition. Scion Asset Management, his hedge fund, will close by year-end. In a recent investor letter, he wrote that his “estimation of value in securities is not now, and has not been for some time, in sync with the markets.” He has since launched a financial newsletter, Cassandra Unchained, where he continues to express skepticism about the AI boom.
A market split as AI hype peaks
Their opposing moves come as even industry leaders begin to acknowledge stretched expectations. Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, has voiced concerns about the pace and scale of speculative fervor surrounding artificial intelligence.