Two companies, CrowdStrike and SentinelOne, have emerged from this scrutiny with a semblance of grace. One might say they’ve managed to avoid the pitfalls of mediocrity, though, naturally, success in this arena is fleeting, and often more a matter of perception than genuine innovation. Let us, with a touch of cynical amusement, examine their fortunes.
It’s not sexy. It won’t get you invited to exclusive investor conferences. But in a world obsessed with disruption, sometimes the most radical thing you can do is… consistently make money. It’s like wearing sensible shoes to a rave. Unexpected, but effective.
The decision wasn’t his alone, they say. His investment team, those young wolves sniffing out the next kill, likely nudged him toward it. Still, a vote of confidence it is. A begrudging nod to the power that now dictates so much of our lives, quietly shaping the fates of millions.
There was a time, of course, when the charts flared with a reckless exuberance. February 2021 saw it briefly touch $65, then, caught in the whirlwind of the tech boom, it soared past $320 in October of the same year. A rather dizzying climb for a company still finding its footing. The subsequent descent, hastened by the banking anxieties of early 2023 – a mere $12 a share – and a subsequent, partial recovery to $85, only to slip again to its current level, feels less like volatility and more like a weary resignation. The past year has seen a 65% decline; year-to-date, a 33% subtraction. Numbers, of course, tell a story, but they rarely capture the full measure of disappointment.
Transaction value is based on the SEC Form 4 reported price of $120.68. Post-transaction value reflects the market close price on February 10, 2026, as reported in the SEC filing.
Solana (SOL 0.39%), you see, is the native cryptocurrency of a network launched in 2020, with the rather ambitious aim of being a faster, cheaper, and generally more capable version of Ethereum (ETH +0.04%). Developers, apparently, are flocking to it to construct these ‘decentralized applications’ – mostly, one suspects, for gaming and financial speculation. The very notion.
Several parties have presented themselves, each with varying degrees of preparedness and, one suspects, a differing understanding of the costs involved. Orbital Reef, a venture backed by the considerable resources of Blue Origin and Amazon, appears to be operating on a scale befitting their founders, though a touch of uncertainty hangs about their timeline. Starlab, an even more extensive alliance, boasts a multitude of partners, both American and international, a circumstance which, while lending a degree of stability, may also prove cumbersome in the execution of their plans.
But hark! The year 2026 has brought a change of scenery. A distinct murmur of discontent has rippled through the audience, and a rotation, a shifting of favor, has begun. Investors, weary of the predictable performance of the usual suspects, now cast their gaze upon the small caps, seeking value and, dare I say, a touch of excitement. For too long, portfolios have been weighted toward artificial intelligence and the so-called “Magnificent Seven,” a concentration of risk that any sensible player would deem… imprudent. Diversification, it seems, is not merely a word for the textbooks, but a principle for the preservation of capital.
(These numbers are based on the SEC filing, which, let’s be honest, is where dreams go to die… or, you know, get reported.)
The recent pronouncements from Micron—a commitment, a veritable pledge, to unleash upwards of two hundred billion dollars upon the construction of memory fabrication facilities, primarily within the borders of the United States, with further disbursements destined for more distant shores—have understandably generated a chorus of optimistic pronouncements. But a seasoned observer—one who has witnessed the cyclical nature of this industry with a detached, almost entomological curiosity—cannot help but perceive a subtle discord, a hint of precariousness beneath the veneer of prosperity.