华尔街见闻·2025-11-11 05:59Core Viewpoint - Michael Burry highlights that major tech companies are artificially inflating profits by extending the useful life of their assets, leading to an underestimation of depreciation, which could result in a profit overstatement of $176 billion from 2026 to 2028 [3][4]. Group 1: Accounting Practices - Burry accuses tech giants of engaging in accounting "tricks" by extending the useful life of assets to lower depreciation expenses, thereby inflating earnings [6][7]. - He points out that companies like Meta, Alphabet, Microsoft, Oracle, and Amazon are extending depreciation periods for hardware, with some extending it to six years, despite the typical product cycle being only two to three years [9][10]. Group 2: Future Implications - The trend of extending asset life could lead to a significant increase in depreciation expenses in the future, impacting short-term profitability once this practice is reversed [11]. - Analysts predict that the market has not adequately accounted for the upcoming surge in depreciation expenses, particularly for Google, Meta, and Amazon, which could lead to a $16.4 billion underestimation in their future earnings [12][13]. Group 3: AI and Hardware Lifecycle - The rapid advancement of AI technology exacerbates the issue, as hardware used for AI, such as GPUs, has a shorter effective lifespan of three to five years, contradicting the extended depreciation practices of tech companies [13].