Surging 580%! The "former internet sensation" Allbirds switches to selling computing power and gets wildly hyped, netizens urge Nike "it's time to build a data center."
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“As long as you’re bold enough, even a wool shoe factory can become a computing powerhouse!”
In this era where even the grandpas at the village entrance are talking about large models, the US stock market just put on an extremely surreal “transformation show.”
A company that originally sold wool shoes spent less than two weeks selling off all its shoes and turned around to buy a bunch of GPUs (graphics processing units). The result? Its stock price shot straight up, surging nearly sixfold in one day!
No more shoes! Silicon Valley’s “Foot Strength” transforms into a new AI star
On April 15, Allbirds, once known as the “go-to shoes for Silicon Valley coders,” suddenly pulled a major move: We’re done! Shoes are too hard to sell, so we’re embracing the stars and the sea—pivoting to AI computing! The company even picked out a new name: Don’t call us Allbirds anymore, call us “NewBird AI.”
Once this vision was painted, Wall Street money went wild. The stock price soared 580% in one day, climbing from under $3 “junk stock” to $17, with market cap swelling from $21 million to $148 million in a blink.
The wildest part? Just two weeks before this “AI drama,” Allbirds had sold its original business—its brand trademark and shoe assets—all bundled off to someone else for a bargain price of $39 million.
After seeing this “ditch shoes for A” operation, even the seasoned CNBC host Jim Cramer shook his head on air: “This is just absurd!”
“Don’t ask; the answer is: go sell GPUs!”
A shoe seller, how do they do AI? Allbirds’ plan is loud and clear: They plan to borrow $50 million (expected to be in hand by Q2 2026) to buy a batch of high-performance GPUs, then act as “compute landlords” and rent them to those AI companies starved for resources.
In the announcement, they hyped… oh, I mean, they envisioned: “AI is so hot right now, computing power is lacking! There’s no space left in North American data centers; all computing power up to 2026 has already been snapped up. We, NewBird AI, are here to save the world!”
Sounds exciting, right? But everyone knows how much money this business burns. Nvidia became a $5 trillion giant by selling GPUs—do you think you can make it big in AI with just $50 million in borrowed cash? In the AI world, this money probably only covers the down payment and electricity bill.
Nike gets caught in the crossfire: Bro, how about we build a data center too?
While Allbirds laughs to the bank by riding the AI hype, the giant Nike, still honestly selling shoes, is questioning its existence.
At the same time, Nike’s stock price dropped to its lowest point in 11 years. The financial report looks bad, the future projections are even worse, and compared to its 2021 peak, the price fell by about 76%.
Then, financial influencer Dr. Parik Patel on X (formerly Twitter) posted a hilarious thread:
“Has Nike considered stopping shoe sales and pivoting to AI data centers?”
The thread went instantly viral, with 500,000 views. Netizens eagerly joined in:
- “Just Do It is out; from now on, call it Just Compute It!”
- “Nike’s shoeboxes really do look like server cases—just stuff some GPUs in them!”
After all, on one side you have shoes that no one cares to buy, and on the other, you just change your name and your worth skyrockets—who wouldn’t be confused by that comparison?
Familiar recipe, familiar “cutting leeks” vibe
Veteran investors watching this probably just smiled knowingly. This US stock market trope of “if you can’t beat them, join the trend” is just too familiar.
A few years back, when Bitcoin was hot, a bunch of companies selling iced tea and doing online lending all announced their foray into “blockchain”—the stock prices soared, and when the hype faded, it was a mess. Now it’s AI’s turn to take the fall.
Looking back at Allbirds’ journey is truly a sigh.
In 2015, they started out selling eco-friendly merino wool shoes, successfully fitting into Silicon Valley elites’ aesthetic. Back then, in Silicon Valley, if you weren’t wearing a pair of Allbirds, you’d be embarrassed to say hello to anyone.
When they went public in 2021, it was all glory, with a valuation as high as $4 billion.
The result? In just a few years, competition increased, nobody bought in, sales halved. The star of $4 billion ended up selling itself for only $39 million.
But it doesn’t matter—as long as the PPT is good, even wool shoes can grow AI wings. Whether this “NewBird” eventually soars or crashes into a roasted chicken, let's all grab a seat and watch the show!
Risk Warning and DisclaimerThe market has risks, and investment requires caution. This article does not constitute personal investment advice, nor does it take into account any individual user’s specific investment objectives, financial situation, or needs. Users should consider whether any opinions, views, or conclusions in this article are suitable for their own situation. If you invest based on this, you are responsible for the consequences. ```