"Big Short" Burry: AI infrastructure has become a key pillar of the U.S. economy; Trump cannot afford to let the AI boom fail.

Investor Michael Burry, known for accurately predicting the 2008 subprime mortgage crisis, said the success of the artificial intelligence (AI) industry is now just as crucial to the U.S. government as it is to the tech giants driving the boom. The real-life inspiration for the film "The Big Short" said the Trump administration has little room to cool down the AI boom. He believes that although he remains bearish on several companies at the core of the AI trade, AI infrastructure buildout has become a key force supporting the U.S. economy. According to reports, Burry wrote in a recent Substack chat: "Trump and his team know that the AI narrative and infrastructure buildout are the only forces supporting this economic cycle, and the most positive thing that has happened this year." He added: "They cannot afford to let it fall." At the same time, he also questioned what measures Washington could actually take to prevent the economy from sliding into a downturn. Burry's short bets on U.S. AI stocks began in Q3 2025 with put options on NVIDIA Corporation (NVDA.US) and Palantir (PLTR.US) with a notional value of about $1.1 billion, and expanded in 2026 into a full-chain short network covering semiconductors, memory, and AI infrastructure, including bearish bets on Micron Technology, Inc. (MU.US), Oracle Corporation (ORCL.US), Nebius (NBIS.US), and the iShares Semiconductor ETF (SOXX). He has also repeatedly questioned the AI investment logic, arguing that massive capital expenditure may not necessarily sustainable returns. In addition, circular financing, misreported GPU depreciation schedules, and off-balance-sheet liabilities are all "pillars" of Burry's short bets on U.S. AI stocks.