"Big Short" Michael Burry Accuses Nvidia of Spending $150 Million to Block AMD from Securing Oracle AI Data Center Contract, Calling Their Tactics "Like the Mafia"

According to CoinWorld, based on monitoring by 1M AI News, investor Michael Burry, known for predicting the 2008 subprime mortgage crisis, posted a claim accusing NVIDIA of anti-competitive behavior in the AI data center projects involving Oracle and OpenAI. Burry stated that the core issue is: OpenAI withdrew from its partnership with Oracle because OpenAI wanted NVIDIA’s next-generation Ruben chips, rather than the Blackwell chips that Oracle had heavily financed and purchased. OpenAI believed that “by the time the building is completed, the chips will be outdated.” Subsequently, NVIDIA intervened, spending about $150 million to prevent AMD from taking over the contract. Burry described this behavior as “mafia-like” and said it should be subject to antitrust action. He also revealed that the U.S. Department of Justice has been investigating NVIDIA for nearly two years, but he believes no lawsuit will be filed under the Trump administration. Burry mentioned that Oracle and OpenAI still maintain their partnership, and Meta has taken over the construction project that OpenAI abandoned. He stated that although “AI Illuminati” (the AI industry community) say it’s no big deal, this is “definitely a major issue.” Neither NVIDIA nor the U.S. Department of Justice has publicly responded to these allegations. The DOJ has indeed been investigating NVIDIA for antitrust concerns since 2024, and by September 2025, subpoenas had been issued to NVIDIA and third-party companies.