Burry's AI Short: Depreciation Tricks or Smart Accounting?

Resources

Books

• "The Big Short: Inside the Doomsday Machine" by Michael Lewis - Mentioned as the basis for Michael Burry's investment strategy and fame, highlighting his ability to make a significant bet against the market.

Videos & Documentaries

• Google's head of AI and infrastructure speaking at a conference - Used as evidence to support the argument that older TPUs and GPUs are still in use and at 100% utilization, potentially validating longer depreciation schedules.

People Mentioned

• Michael Burry - The investor who made a large bet against AI and Palantir, and is also accused of inflating earnings by extending depreciation schedules.
• Brad Gerstner - Mentioned as someone who "popped" the AI bubble, which was then further deflated by Michael Burry's short.
• Alex Karp - Described as a "national treasure" and "incredibly entertaining" for his interviews, and the CEO of Palantir.
• Bill Ackman - Mentioned as having a great idea to put universities on the hook as the first loss for student loan debt.
• Peter Thiel - Referenced for his stance on student loan forgiveness, suggesting more sympathy is needed.
• Ben Shapiro - His clip about young people not being entitled to live where they grew up went viral, sparking discussion on affordability and opportunity.
• Laura Ingraham - Mentioned for her interview with Donald Trump where she questioned him on H-1B visas.
• Howard Lutnick - Explained how abuses in the H-1B visa program occur.
• Balaji - Mentioned for renting a hotel in Forest City, Malaysia, to run his network school, an "in-person Y Combinator network state."

Organizations & Institutions

• SEC - The agency Michael Burry's firm deregistered with.
• Meta - Accused by Michael Burry of cooking the books with hidden depreciation to inflate earnings.
• Oracle - Accused by Michael Burry of cooking the books with hidden depreciation to inflate earnings.
• Nvidia - Mentioned in the context of the lifespan of their H100 chips and servers.
• Coreweave - Mentioned as potentially putting H100 servers at a six-year lifespan.
• Google - Mentioned in the context of its operating profit, CAPEX, and depreciation schedule changes for servers and network equipment.
• CNBC - Criticized for financial illiteracy and misreporting Michael Burry's short position.
• FHFA - The director of this agency tweeted about evaluating portable mortgages.
• National Association of Realtors - Released a report showing the rising average age of first-time homebuyers.
• X (formerly Twitter) - Mentioned as the platform where data about homebuyers went viral.
• Politico - Reported on the 50-year mortgage idea and its criticisms.
• MAGA - Mentioned as a group that criticized the 50-year mortgage idea.
• University of Texas - Mentioned as a place to graduate from with little debt.
• Fordham University - Chamath mentioned graduating from there.
• Hyndai - Mentioned in the context of a plant needing high-skilled workers and the deportation of South Korean workers.
• Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac - Mentioned as entities that have issued or supported about 8 trillion dollars in home loans, potentially contributing to price inflation.
• Y Combinator - Mentioned in the context of Balaji's network school being an "in-person Y Combinator network state."

Websites & Online Resources

• CNBC - Mentioned in the context of reporting on Michael Burry's shorts.
• X - Mentioned as the platform where data about homebuyers went viral.
• Politico - Mentioned as reporting on the 50-year mortgage idea.
• Fox - Laura Ingraham's network where she interviewed Donald Trump.

Other Resources

• H-1B visas - Discussed extensively regarding their abuse and necessity for specialized talent.
• TCO (Total Cost of Ownership) - Implicitly discussed when considering the useful life of servers and depreciation.
• Gaap (Generally Accepted Accounting Principles) - The accounting standards mentioned in relation to depreciation.
• TPUs (Tensor Processing Units) - Mentioned in the context of Google's AI infrastructure and their utilization.
• GPs (Graphics Processing Units) - Mentioned in the context of data centers and their utilization.
• HBM (High Bandwidth Memory) - Mentioned in relation to chip design and utilization.
• SRAM (Static Random-Access Memory) - Mentioned in relation to chip design and utilization.
• 50-year mortgage - A proposal floated by the Trump administration to address housing affordability.
• Portable mortgages - Mentioned as an idea being evaluated by the FHFA.
• Obamacare - Criticized for its impact on healthcare costs and its gross margin cap.
• HSA (Health Savings Account) - Mentioned as a potential vehicle for direct health incentives.
• Student debt - Discussed as a critical issue that needs addressing, with a suggestion for more sympathy towards forgiveness.
• Prop 13 (California) - Mentioned as creating a disincentive for people to sell their homes.
• Forest City in Malaysia - A city built on an island, mentioned as an example of a large development and where Balaji runs his network school.
• Golden visa - Mentioned as an option for people seeking international escape hatches.
• Carrington event - The largest solar storm on record, used as a historical example of potential catastrophic impact.
• Photonic computing - Proposed as a future replacement for electron-based computing, which could mitigate risks from solar storms.
• Vicuña and Wagu - Mentioned as "litmus tests" for entry into a new community, implying exclusivity.