Hua Er Jie Jian Wen·2025-10-27 12:25Core Viewpoint - The upcoming earnings reports from major tech companies raise concerns about whether the current AI hype is leading to a new bubble, despite strong revenue growth expectations [1] Group 1: AI Investment and Returns - Major cloud service providers, including Microsoft, Alphabet, Amazon, and Meta, are expected to invest $400 billion in AI infrastructure this year, but the return on investment remains uncertain [1] - A widely cited MIT study indicates that only about 5% of over 300 analyzed AI projects have achieved measurable benefits, with many remaining in pilot stages due to integration and scalability challenges [1] Group 2: Systemic Risks from Circular Trading - Circular trading reminiscent of the 1990s internet bubble is raising systemic risk concerns, with Nvidia potentially investing $100 billion in OpenAI, which has signed a $1 trillion AI computing deal without clear financing details [2] - Debt financing is becoming increasingly important for large tech companies' AI infrastructure investments, differing from past investment cycles [2] - When companies mutually finance and depend on each other, decision-making may shift from genuine demand to reinforcing growth expectations, increasing systemic risk [2] Group 3: Cloud Business Growth and Profitability - Despite bubble concerns, Amazon, Microsoft, and Google are expected to report strong growth in their cloud computing divisions, although capacity constraints limit their ability to meet AI demand [3] - Microsoft Azure is projected to grow by 38.4%, surpassing Google Cloud's 30.1% and Amazon Web Services' (AWS) 18% growth expectations [3] - While AWS remains the largest player, it faces scrutiny after service outages affected popular applications, and profit growth for these companies is expected to slow due to rising costs [3] Group 4: Investor Sentiment on Application Rates - Some investors believe that beneath the bubble, real value is emerging, citing double-digit revenue growth and strong cash flow as indicators of healthy balance sheets for tech giants [4] - Eric Schiffer, CEO of Patriarch Organization, argues that low current application rates are not indicative of future potential, suggesting that increased investment and model innovation will drive growth [4] Group 5: Industry Maturity Concerns - Andrej Karpathy, co-founder of OpenAI and former AI lead at Tesla, expressed concerns about the overall immaturity of AI models, suggesting that the industry is overestimating its advancements [5]