Michael Burry Is Betting Against These 4 AI Stocks. Is He Right?

Michael Burry became a popular voice in the investing community after he correctly predicted the 2008 mortgage crisis, shorted the market, and made a fortune. Although he closed his management fund last year, he continues to invest and share his market views in prominent social media posts.

Michael Burry, Scion Asset Management founder. Image source: Getty Images.

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Burry has recently been critical of the artificial intelligence (AI) build-out, and putting his money where his mouth is, he's betting against Nvidia (NASDAQ: NVDA), Palantir Technologies (NASDAQ: PLTR), Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA), and Micron Technology (NASDAQ: MU). Is he right?

1. Nvidia

Burry first disclosed Nvidia puts in the first quarter of 2025. He has compared the current AI situation to the dot-com bubble that burst in 2000 and named Nvidia the star player.

He has two main arguments. First, he says the chips aren't being depreciated properly, and their usable lifespan will be shorter than anticipated.

The second concerns Nvidia's circular financing. Nvidia has many mutually beneficial relationships with other companies, such as its agreement with CoreWeave, in which it has a large stake and which is buying Nvidia's chips.

His musings set off a firestorm between him and Nvidia, which shot back with a seven-page defense. Burry's reaction was, "I stand by my analysis. I am not claiming Nvidia is Enron. It is clearly Cisco." The difference being that Enron was a shell company used to manipulate investors, while Cisco's business simply dried up after the dot-com bust.

Is he right? The bull thesis looks strong for Nvidia. It is at the center of AI, and AI continues to develop, with unceasing demand. So far, the hyperscalers are thriving.

What I like about Nvidia is that it's not only an AI company, and that its chips are likely to fuel whatever the next chapter in technology is. However, I would heed Burry's cautions, and at this point, I wouldn't make Nvidia a central position in my portfolio.

2. Palantir

Burry first bought Palantir puts in the third quarter of 2025. Unlike the Nvidia position, he doesn't seem to have a problem with Palantir's business; he just thinks it's "wildly overvalued" and that its fundamental value is less than $50 per share.

As of this writing, Palantir stock trades at $201, which is 171 times trailing-12-month earnings and 84 times trailing-12-month sales. It is the most expensive stock in the S&P 500 (SNPINDEX: ^GSPC) on a price-to-sales basis and has one of the highest P/E ratios in the index.

The market disagrees with him. Palantir stock had fallen earlier this year, but it's back up after nearly flawless performance and amid demand for its Artificial Intelligence Platform (AIP) from U.S. businesses.

I tend to agree that the stock is overvalued, and while there could be short-term gains as the business explodes, it's likely to fall on any slowdown. Long term, it's a great business, but I would wait for a better entry point.

3. Tesla

Burry first took a short position against Tesla in 2021, before the AI revolution. He also called it "ridiculously overvalued" last November, and he bought new Tesla puts in June of this year. Tesla is also one of the most expensive stocks in the S&P 500, trading at a P/E ratio of 359.

However, the context is that net income declined by 60% last year. Tesla stock is down 14% this year on several worries, including the high price tag, lower profits, competition, and mediocre sales growth. However, it's launching new products, including humanoid robots, and it impressed followers last week with its new flying car.

Tesla is moderately expensive using other valuation methods, and it has room to run right now. However, I'd keep the risks in mind, and risk-tolerant investors could consider a small position.

4. Micron

Burry announced puts on Micron in July. He is concerned about the memory cycle and said, "Over the next two years, this shortage will blow off as production catches up, and memory will have a down cycle again."

Micron has been one of the hottest stories this year, as it has become the latest constraint for AI build-out and can't keep up with demand. Micron stock is up 220% year to date. Unlike some of the other stocks here, Micron is cheap, trading at only 12 times trailing-12-month sales. That already accounts for the fear that the cycle will end soon.

There's certainly risk here, and investors should buy this stock with caution. Micron could continue to rise in the short term, and it also has a strong long-term track record. However, because of the volatility of its industry, there could be many ups and downs along the way.

Jennifer Saibil has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Cisco Systems, Micron Technology, Nvidia, Palantir Technologies, and Tesla. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.