Investor Steve Eisman of “The Big Short” fame expects Apple to capture epic gains from the artificial intelligence boom. “I think Apple is actually the hidden AI play,” he told CNBC’s ” Fast Money ” on Tuesday, less than 24 hours before chip giant Nvidia reports its fiscal first-quarter results. Eisman, who is now senior portfolio manager at Neuberger Berman, is known for his successful bet against the housing market ahead of the 2008 financial crisis. This time around, he is placing his chips on AI innovation. He lists Nvidia, Advanced Micro Devices and cloud companies with massive databases among the most obvious ways to play AI. “Everybody is focused on the cloud,” said Eisman. “When the apps show up, the biggest probably beneficiary is going to be Apple because they’re going to have a refresh of literally everything that they sell.” Indeed, the investor is already thinking about his own upgrade cycle. “When there will be apps that the consumer can use, they’re going to want to use it on their phone,” Eisman said. “I have a new iPhone, and I know for sure that when all those apps come on my phone, I’ll need a new phone, and I’ll need a new iPad and I’ll need a new laptop.” He suggests investors will have to be patient because the AI-driven apps need time to be developed. “That’s when this whole refresh cycle is really going to take off,” Eisman said. Disclaimer
