Bloomberg Tech – Episode Summary

Episode: Nvidia Shares Fall on Reports of Google Competition
Date: November 25, 2025
Hosts: Caroline Hyde (New York) & Ed Ludlow (San Francisco)

Episode Overview

This episode deeply analyzes the recent volatility in Nvidia’s stock as reports surface that Meta is considering shifting its AI chip purchases from Nvidia to Google’s TPU (Tensor Processing Unit) chips. The hosts and guests discuss the shifting landscape of AI hardware, the growing prowess of Alphabet in AI and semiconductors, the implications for other tech players and the broader market, Apple’s rare layoffs, debt markets activity among tech firms, the ongoing Taiwan-China-US semiconductor saga, private market valuations, the state of robotics in the home, and more.

Key Topics & Insights

1. Market Turmoil: Nvidia Drops, Alphabet Surges

• Main Story (02:40–07:00)

  • Trigger: Nvidia shares fell by approx. 5%, dragging down the NASDAQ 100 (~5–10% dip), largely due to reports that Meta may buy AI chips from Google instead of Nvidia.
  • Alphabet's Rise: Alphabet adds $1T in market cap since October due to “prowess in AI and chips”, accelerated by strong performance from its Gemini model and deals with Meta and Anthropic.
  • Quote:

    "Sentiment has really reversed on Alphabet ... people really see this as a really significant potential competitor to Nvidia... It has all of the pieces."
    — Equity reporter Ron Plastellica (03:49)

  • Nvidia still holds 90% share in the data center market for AI chips, but Alphabet could disrupt this if its TPU push succeeds, possibly scaling to a $900B business rivaling its cloud operations.

• Short/Long Trades & Tech Winners/Losers (05:05–06:53)

  • Investors are moving toward Google suppliers (e.g., Broadcom), away from OpenAI-linked names (Oracle, AMD, Microsoft).
  • Oracle experiencing its “biggest one-month drop since 2001.”

2. Nvidia’s Future & AI Hardware Landscape

• Nvidia's Position: Still Dominant, but Threatened (05:32–07:00)

  • "If Alphabet starts eating into Nvidia’s share … people will reassess how to value that company and its growth."
  • Massive, still-expanding AI market means space for multiple large players; even Alphabet remains a Nvidia customer due to huge compute demand.

• Expert View — Market Health & Valuations (06:53–13:00)

  • Stephanie Aliaga (JP Morgan Asset Management) says market competition at the top is healthy, promoting selectivity and reducing bubble risk.
  • She compares the scale of AI investment to familiar luxury spending:

    "Just like Cartier isn't that expensive for a billionaire."

  • Warns against extrapolating risk from Oracle’s bond/debt challenges to all hyperscalers.
  • Predicts future focus will shift from pure compute to actual AI utilization, software, and returns outside of core tech.

3. Geopolitics: Taiwan & Chip Sovereignty

• Xi Jinping & Trump Discuss Taiwan (14:22–17:40)
  • China revives Taiwan sovereignty as a tech risk:

    "Any question of Taiwan really does bring up tech issues for us."
    — Mike Shepard (15:50)

  • US strengthens “Manhattan Project” rhetoric, but new executive order lacks dedicated funding; the 2022 Chips & Science Act remains the main instrument for US chip investment.
  • Ongoing questions around whether US development pace, incentives, and supply chain shifts are sufficient.

4. Other Tech Moves: Apple & Layoffs

• Rare Apple Layoffs (18:54–21:27)
  • Apple cuts dozens of sales/account roles, focusing on efficiency and channel consolidation.
  • Mark Gurman:

    “It’s notable because we don’t often see layoffs at Apple... This is just one of your classic layoffs to create more efficiency and cost cutting rather than having much to do with artificial intelligence.” (20:32)

  • Most enterprise/government/education sales will now route via third-party channels, not Apple direct.

5. Nvidia, AI Bubble Fears, & Tech Valuations

• Michael Burry Critiques Nvidia (21:54–26:00)
  • Burry highlights “stock-based compensation dilution” for Nvidia.

    “If you hold the stock, it’s being diluted... I’m not comparing Nvidia to Enron, I’m comparing it to Cisco.” (25:34)

  • Nvidia responds to Wall St. analysts, claiming Burry “got the math wrong,” denying fraud.
  • Nvidia near 20% drawdown from highs—entering technical bear territory.

6. Google’s TPU Threat, Chip Wars, and Margins

• Expert Analysis: Mandeep Singh, Bloomberg Intelligence (28:08–30:43)

  • Gemini 3 demonstrates Google's TPU can match Nvidia chips for both AI model training and inference—potentially at much lower cost.
  • Nvidia’s 75% gross margins are “something we have never seen with a semiconductor company”—sustainability questioned as cost competition increases.

• Dell & HP Earnings Preview (30:43–33:15)

  • Dell’s AI server business is strong but under margin pressure to land major deals; HP’s profit margins squeezed by memory chip price hikes.
  • Both looking to AI as a growth driver, but their hardware margins are under stress compared to Nvidia.

7. Is There an AI Bubble? Private vs. Public Markets

• Brian Halligan, Sequoia (36:25–42:08)
  • Halligan focuses on “bubble anxiety” in private markets:

    “History doesn’t repeat, but it rhymes. The valuations are high and they’re high early, but there’s galactic level growth in these startups.” (36:25)

  • Advises founders: Take some money off the table in new rounds and raise more than planned to weather volatility.
  • Champions the Grateful Dead as a marketing/entrepreneurship model:

    “He [Jerry Garcia] was like the first viral marketer in Silicon Valley... He thought in a very original way, a first-principles founder. He rhymes a lot with Jensen Huang, Sam Altman, Steve Jobs.” (38:32)

  • On AI apps: Enormous demand, productivity payoff just beginning—“the app layer is starting to pop”; startups are “hiring aggressively.”

8. Robotics: Memo the Housekeeper

• Tony Zhao, Sunday Robotics (45:32–49:55)
  • Memo robot uses a safety-first, non-humanoid design, learns chores via glove-digitized human demonstration.
  • Plans for affordability:

    “At [volume] 5000, we’re able to get a cost to below $10k... We’re thinking about robots like a fancy smartphone or laptop.” (48:46)

  • Challenges include user acceptance (“How will people react to a big robot in their home?”), and leveraging Asian supply chain advances for cost efficiencies.

9. Trends in AI Cooking & “Recipe Slop”

• Generative AI in the Kitchen (43:59–44:50)
  • Davey Alba reports on bloggers warning of unreliable AI-generated holiday recipes:

    “If you follow the actual recipe steps that are generated by these AI models, you could come out with literal slop.” (44:39)

Notable Quotes & Moments

• Alphabet’s Ascendance:
  “Sentiment has really reversed on Alphabet... people really see this as a really significant potential competitor to Nvidia.”
  — Ron Plastellica, 03:49

• Nvidia’s Margin Warning:
  “Nvidia’s problem is no one wants to pay the high cost they have for their chips... 75% gross margin is something we have never seen.”
  — Mandeep Singh, 29:34

• Bubble Risk Perspective:
  “The valuations are high and they’re high early, but there’s galactic level growth... If it is a bubble and it dips, you want enough (capital) to last through.”
  — Brian Halligan, Sequoia, 36:25

• Stock Dilution Critique:
  “If you hold the stock, it’s being diluted by the stock-based compensation... I’m not comparing Nvidia to Enron, I’m comparing it to Cisco.”
  — Michael Burry (summary via Carmen Reineke), 25:34

• AI-generated Recipe Anxiety:
  “If you follow the actual recipe steps that are generated by these AI models, you could come out with literal slop, you know, inedible food.”
  — Davey Alba, 44:39

• Robotics Value Proposition:
  “We’re thinking about robots... not like another car-like purchase, but more like a fancy smartphone or a laptop.”
  — Tony Zhao, 48:46

Key Timestamps by Topic

• [02:40] Nvidia and Alphabet market moves; Meta considers TPUs
• [03:49] Analyst perspective: Alphabet’s strength in AI and chips
• [05:05] Winners and losers in AI supply chain; Oracle, AMD, Microsoft down
• [06:53] JP Morgan: market health, debt, bubble risk, and future indicators
• [14:22] Taiwan-China-US: Chip sovereignty & tech supply chains
• [18:54] Apple layoffs—marking a rare workforce reduction
• [21:54] Michael Burry’s Nvidia skepticism; stock-based compensation debate
• [28:08] Google TPU analysis—can Alphabet’s chips compete?
• [30:43] Dell and HP’s margin struggles amid AI-driven demand
• [36:25] Sequoia’s Halligan: Bubble comparisons, private market perspective
• [43:59] Generative AI’s “recipe slop” problem for food bloggers
• [45:32] Robotics: Sunday Robotics' Memo housekeeping robot
• [48:46] Robot pricing and manufacturing strategy

Summary & Takeaway

This episode captures a pivotal moment in the fast-evolving AI and semiconductor landscape: Alphabet is emerging as a true hardware competitor to Nvidia, with the promise of its TPUs threatening Nvidia’s business model and margins. Investors are recalibrating, moving capital in anticipation of a potential AI hardware reshuffle, as “AI utilization” and monetization become the new focus. Meanwhile, public and private markets are wary of overheated valuations, but actual demand and innovation remain rampant, especially in AI and robotics. External factors — from geopolitics to supply chains — remain significant wildcards.

In short:

• Nvidia’s singular dominance in AI chips may no longer be secure.
• Alphabet’s “sleeping giant” status in AI hardware is abruptly over.
• Tech profits, margins, and valuations are under re-examination in a fiercer competitive environment.
• Outside of chips, tech continues to pursue efficiency (Apple), productivity (AI apps), and bold new frontiers (household robots), all while hoping not to create “slop” — literal or figurative — as generative AI gates crash open.

For listeners:
If you want to understand the next phase of competition in AI hardware and what it means for the biggest players in tech, their investors, and the global supply chain — this episode is essential.