Venture capitalist Chamath Palihapitiya dismissed “Big Short” investor Michael Burry as incompetent this week, stating the famed bear is “not very good at what he does” following Burry's suggestions that Nvidia Corp. (NASDAQ:NVDA) is using accounting tricks to inflate its value.
Palihapitiya Dismisses Burry’s Theory As Incompetence
The sharp rebuke came during the latest episode of the All-In Podcast, recorded at The Venetian in Las Vegas.
The discussion was sparked by Burry's recent critiques of Nvidia, where he argued the chipmaker's massive share buybacks are effectively cooked books—designed to hide the dilutive impact of stock-based compensation (SBC) rather than return value to shareholders.
Palihapitiya, visibly unimpressed by Burry’s analysis, urged his co-hosts to move on from the topic entirely.
“I think we’ve given this guy way too much airtime,” Palihapitiya said. “He’s not very good at what he does.”
Friedberg Defends Accounting Practices
Before Palihapitiya's dismissal, co-host David Friedberg offered a technical dismantling of Burry’s thesis. Friedberg argued that Burry's implication of hidden or nefarious accounting is factually incorrect because all relevant data is transparently available in public filings.
“Burry’s implication that they are cooking the books or hiding accounting is completely false,” Friedberg said.
He explained that any intelligent investor can look at the cash flow statement to reconcile the difference between net income and free cash flow.
“The investor has the choice on how they want to value the company… Burry is incorrect in thinking that they’re hiding anything because it’s all there.”
Burry Warns AI Boom Is Repeat Of 2000’s Dot-Com Bust
The conflict highlights the growing divide between tech-optimist investors and skeptical “doomers.” Burry, whose Scion Asset Management recently revealed bearish put options against Nvidia and Palantir Technologies Inc. (NASDAQ:PLTR), views the AI boom as a bubble comparable to the 2000 dot-com crash.
In contrast, the All-In hosts generally view the sector’s growth as supported by robust, tangible demand for AI infrastructure.
While Burry contends that Nvidia's buybacks are a “defensive maneuver” that reduces real earnings by 50%, Palihapitiya and Friedberg maintain that the market has all the information it needs to set the price accurately—and that Burry's warnings are merely noise.
The futures of the S&P 500, Nasdaq 100, and Dow Jones indices were trading higher on Monday, after a positive close on Friday.
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