Steve Eisman, the investor immortalized in “The Big Short” for betting against the housing market before it imploded in 2008, is now turning his skeptical eye toward artificial intelligence.
The case against the AI hype machine
Back in December 2025, during an appearance on CNBC’s Squawk Box, Eisman flagged a concern that most AI bulls would rather not discuss. He argued that performance improvements in large language models would begin to slow as they scale. That observation alone made him “nervous,” as he put it. But at the time, he explicitly said he wasn’t selling any AI stocks he owned.
By June 2026, his tone had sharpened considerably. Eisman turned his criticism toward the companies pouring enormous sums into AI infrastructure, specifically calling out hyperscalers like Alphabet and Microsoft. His core argument is that these companies are spending trillions on AI capabilities, but many of them lack the competitive moats needed to justify those expenditures.
Follow the picks and shovels
