Michael Burry, the investor famously portrayed in The Big Short for predicting the 2008 housing market collapse, has issued a stark warning about the current artificial intelligence boom, calling it an unsustainable bubble of epic proportions that may be too large to save when it inevitably bursts. In a post on X (formerly Twitter) late Tuesday, Burry wrote that the government would likely deploy every available tool to rescue the AI sector—just as it did with the financial system during the 2008 crisis—but emphasized that the scale of the current mania makes it “too big to save.” He warned that the collapse of the AI bubble could trigger a broader market and economic downturn. His comments came in response to a post by George Noble, a former hedge fund manager and ex-assistant to legendary investor Peter Lynch at Fidelity. Noble claimed that OpenAI is “falling apart in real time,” citing mounting challenges including fierce competition from Google’s Gemini 3, soaring operational costs, widening losses, and Elon Musk’s ongoing lawsuit against the company. Burry agreed with the sentiment, stating that the massive sums being spent and borrowed by the world’s wealthiest corporations “will not buy enough time” — a hallmark of speculative mania. He criticized OpenAI’s ambitious long-term spending plan, which includes a projected $1.4 trillion investment over eight years, calling it “dreamy” and unsustainable. Despite OpenAI’s rapid revenue growth—from $2 billion in 2023 to over $20 billion in 2024, according to its finance chief—Burry remains skeptical. In December, he compared the company to Netscape, the once-dominant internet browser that ultimately failed amid a wave of innovation and overvaluation. “OpenAI is the next Netscape, doomed and hemorrhaging cash,” he wrote. Burry, who transitioned from managing a hedge fund to publishing sharp, contrarian insights on Substack, has said he would short OpenAI if it were publicly traded. He’s also expressed surprise that the startup sparked a multi-trillion-dollar global infrastructure race, describing the current AI frenzy as a classic bubble fueled by hype rather than sustainable fundamentals. The eight most valuable public companies in the U.S.—Nvidia, Alphabet, Apple, Microsoft, Amazon, Broadcom, Meta, and Tesla—each boast market capitalizations exceeding $1 trillion, and together are worth more than $22 trillion. All are heavily invested in AI, betting on its transformative potential. The comparison to the 2008 financial crisis is unavoidable. Back then, the government bailed out “too big to fail” banks, a move that drew criticism for favoring Wall Street over ordinary citizens. Now, experts are split on whether today’s AI surge represents a genuine technological revolution or a fleeting wave of irrational exuberance. Jeremy Grantham, a veteran investor and noted bubble analyst, recently stated that “the probabilities that AI will not bust are slim to none.” On the other hand, figures like Kevin O’Leary and tech investor Ross Gerber have expressed confidence in AI’s long-term impact, arguing it’s driving unprecedented productivity gains and economic growth. As the AI race intensifies, Burry’s warnings serve as a sobering counterpoint to the prevailing optimism—raising urgent questions about valuation, risk, and the long-term consequences of betting the future on artificial intelligence.