Did Jensen Make the AI Boom, or Did the AI Boom Make Jensen?

Full quad for this ep and halfway through recording, the Wall Street Journal reported that Jensen Huang was out at Nvidia. We didn’t stop the tape. Consider the first part a historical POV.

Jess, Sam, Dave and Brit are back together to break down the scandal shaking the world’s most valuable company. They cover the reported ties to a woman whose companies allegedly moved banned chips to China, the Wachtell-led board investigation, and why a relationship with a direct report is a board problem as much as a personal one. Once the WSJ headline drops, the conversation shifts to what comes next. Did Jensen make the AI boom, or did the AI boom make Jensen? Who could actually run Nvidia: Tim Cook, Apple’s silicon chief, or someone inside? Could Nvidia be headed for a Microsoft-style lost decade?

The crew also gets into Anthropic’s IPO roadshow and the claim that AI can now move labs off Nvidia hardware in hours. Sam explains why the only reason to buy Anthropic at IPO is regret, and introduces his theory that AI companies have a “make it dumber” dial for hitting the quarter. Plus: Sam’s Claude-run home camera network, using AI to track insider stock sales, and why calling the AI bubble for Q1 makes no sense.

Chapters:

00:00 Intro

01:06 Everyone's Back After Two Interview Episodes

02:16 Taping on a Wednesday, Because That's How Fast This Is Moving

03:51 The Facts: Jensen, Alice Huang, and the Chip Network

05:28 Midterms, China Hawks, and Why the Knives Are Out Now

05:52 The Board Hires Wachtell Lipton

07:01 A Half-Trillion Dollar Affair

08:24 The Second Report, and Why Lying to Your Board Is Different

10:15 Six Months From Now, Is Jensen Still CEO?

11:19 Sam: His Meme Game Isn't Strong Enough to Survive This

13:35 Brit Pitches the Movie

14:37 What the Prediction Markets Say

15:27 Who Could Actually Run Nvidia? Sam Says Tim Cook

16:31 Is Nvidia Too Big to Fail?

18:05 What Jensen's Exit Would Mean for the AI Trade

20:09 Anthropic and OpenAI Say They Can Switch Hardware in Hours

21:07 A Text From Arianna Huffington, Live

22:25 Anthropic's IPO, Nine Days Out

23:41 Sam Has His Bots Monitoring Insider Trading Filings

24:58 Bot Complaints of the Week: Jess vs Muse and Claude

26:25 The WSJ Headline Breaks Mid-Recording

26:33 Sam's Cameras: The AI Ordered the Hardware Itself

27:40 Token Shaving: Are They Making Claude Dumber for Margin?

29:26 Dave: There's a Second Dial, and It's Parasocial

30:46 The Board Is Meeting Right Now

31:33 Can AI Make This a Movie by Friday?

32:50 Why Tim Cook, and What Nvidia Actually Stands to Lose

35:19 What Does Jensen Do Next?

36:40 Did Jensen Make the AI Boom, or Did the Boom Make Jensen?

37:38 Is This the Best Trade Ever Going Into Earnings?

41:56 Would You Buy Anthropic at the IPO?

43:13 New York Thinks the Bubble Pops in Q1

45:12 The Most Entertaining Storyline of 2026

46:25 Why This Story Is a Win for Reporting

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Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/more-or-less-from-the-morins-and-the-lessins/id1692234179

Connect with us here:

1) Sam Lessin: https://x.com/lessin

2) Dave Morin: https://x.com/davemorin

3) Jessica Lessin: https://x.com/Jessicalessin

4) Brit Morin: https://x.com/brit

About More or Less: For 15 years, the Morins and the Lessins have debated the future of Silicon Valley as the closest of friends. Every Friday, they break down technology, capital, and media. From The Information, Offline Ventures, and Slow Ventures.