Silently closing his funds, famed short seller Burry denies shorting $900 million of Nvidia and Palantir: only spent $9.2 million in total.
The real-life prototype of the main character in the movie "The Big Short," and the investment tycoon who accurately predicted the 2008 U.S. subprime mortgage crisis—Michael Burry—has once again sparked heated debate in the market.
After the media exposed his "heavy bet on shorting AI giants," Burry personally came forward to refute the rumors, stating that the so-called "$912 million short position" was merely a math error by the media—the actual amount he invested was only $9.2 million.
At the same time, SEC filings show that his Scion Asset Management terminated its registration status on November 10.
“CNBC got the math wrong by 100 times”
Burry posted a screenshot on social media platform X, citing a CNBC headline: “Michael Burry holds $912 million worth of Palantir put options.”
He responded: “I bought 50,000 put options at $1.84 each. Each contract corresponds to 100 shares. I only spent $9.2 million, not $912 million. @CNBC @WSJ @FT.”
This discrepancy comes from the way 13F position reports are presented.
In SEC filings, institutions must disclose option positions in terms of "notional value," calculated based on the market value of the underlying stocks. Media often misinterpret this number as the actual investment amount.
For example, in Burry’s case, his put options correspond to 5 million shares of Palantir, with a share price at the time of about $182, so the “nominal size” shown in the report is $912 million. But this is only the potential exposure, not the real investment.
In other words, Burry’s actual expenditure on his AI stock bet was just over $9 million.
He joked: "Each contract lets me sell Palantir stock at $50 in 2027. The current price is $184—that means the market is 73% more expensive than my ‘target price.’ And the trade was completed last month.”
Frequent warnings of AI bubble: Nvidia, Palantir “outrageously overvalued”
Since returning to social media, Burry has been active, repeatedly naming Nvidia, Palantir, Meta, Oracle, and other “big AI names,” claiming they have “overblown” capital expenditures (CapEx) and that they falsely boost profits by extending asset depreciation years.
He warned: “The market is being swept up by an AI bubble, just like the internet bubble in 2000.”
In fact, Citron Research released a report as early as August stating Palantir’s “real value is only $40,” and advised investors to short it.
Burry’s “$50 put options” appear to coincide with Citron’s assessment.
Scion fund deregistration—Burry may “start anew”
In addition to the AI shorting episode, another move by Burry is equally notable: he has quietly deregistered his hedge fund, Scion Asset Management, from the SEC.
In a letter to investors dated October 27, Burry announced he would liquidate the fund and return investors’ money, mentioning his disappointment with market valuations.
According to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission website, Scion’s registration status ended on November 10. Burry himself later posted a screenshot on X, stating “better things are coming on November 25.”
Some investors speculate this may mean Burry will be free from traditional regulatory frameworks and create a new independent platform—for example, a blog, subscription channel, or trade tracking service—to directly share his investment insights.
Some social media users even posted supposed screenshots suggesting that Burry plans “to return investor funds and close the fund before year-end,” but this has not been officially confirmed.
From predicting the subprime crisis in 2008 to warning of the “AI bubble” in 2025, Burry seems to always stand against mainstream euphoria.
His latest moves—including low-cost bets against AI stocks and actively deregistering his fund—once again showcase this contrarian investor’s independent stance.
He shared a meme on social media: “Sometimes, we can see bubbles. Sometimes, we can take measures to deal with them. Sometimes, the only winning move is not to play?”
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