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The parallels are not merely superficial. Both eras share a common thread: the belief in a technology that will fundamentally alter the fabric of existence. The internet, in its time, offered a vision of interconnectedness and access to knowledge previously unimaginable. Now, artificial intelligence promises to liberate us from the drudgery of labor and unlock new frontiers of creativity. But the human heart, prone to both hope and delusion, often fails to discern between genuine progress and fleeting fancy. The wise investor, therefore, seeks not to ride the crest of the wave, but to anchor himself to something… more enduring.

The cause of this little stir? A gentleman by the name of Daniel Loeb, head of a hedge fund called Third Point. A fellow who, it seems, doesn’t shy from voicing his opinions. He sent a letter to CoStar’s board of directors, a missive filled with suggestions – or, as some might call them, demands – for change. A polite request for a new course, delivered with the force of a Mississippi steamboat.

Meta, however, is taking a different tack. A rather sly one, if you ask me. They’ve found a way to make this AI business actually earn money. Meta Advantage+ is what they’re calling it. Sounds innocent enough, doesn’t it? It’s all about showing people advertisements. But not just any advertisements. The right advertisements. The ones that make you reach for your wallet before you even realise you’re doing it.

It seems Nvidia, that maker of shiny little chips that dream up artificial intelligence, decided to throw some money at CoreWeave, a cloud operation that Applied Digital happens to know. A lot of money. Two billion dollars, actually. That’s enough to buy a small country, or at least a very large data center.

The question, of course, is not whether a shift in narrative has occurred – the evidence is, regrettably, quite conclusive – but whether this narrative justifies, or even permits, a present investment. To proceed without a thorough accounting of the possible outcomes would be, one might say, a dereliction of duty. And yet, the very act of accounting feels increasingly…circular.

This company, valued at over fifty-two billion, stands as a peculiar giant amongst its peers. Electronic Arts, Take-Two—they are established fields, yielding predictable harvests. Roblox is different. It’s a seed dropped in what some would call barren ground, a digital dustbowl where fortunes are built and lost on the whims of youthful fancy. It’s a gamble, certainly, but one with a peculiar logic all its own.

Trading volume was… enthusiastic. 60.8 million shares. Which, if I’d calculated correctly (and that’s always a big ‘if’), is about 76% above their three-month average. People are paying attention. Bradesco IPO’d back in 2002, which makes it a relative dinosaur in the tech-obsessed world of finance. Still, it’s managed a 387% climb since then. Not bad. Not bad at all. Though I keep thinking about all the missed opportunities…Bitcoin, anyone?

UPS [UPS +0.21%] released its fourth-quarter results on Tuesday, a document that spoke of $24.5 billion in revenue, a figure diminished by a 3% decline from the previous year. A subtraction, really, from the grand accumulation of goods, as if the world had momentarily lost its appetite. Operating profit, adjusted for the usual accounting illusions, fell nearly 7% to $2.9 billion, a sum that felt strangely weightless in the face of such vast logistical operations. Yet, the market, ever capricious, seemed momentarily appeased, the shares rising a mere 0.2%, a hesitant nod compared to the S&P 500’s bolder 0.4% ascent. A small victory, perhaps, or merely a postponement of the inevitable.

Prediction markets, these curious exchanges where one bets on the inevitable (or the improbable), are blooming like a particularly resilient weed. Experts whisper of a trillion dollars changing hands by 2030. A tidy sum, wouldn’t you say? Enough to build a small principality, perhaps.

Investors, as is their wont, are keeping a keen eye on CoreWeave’s ambitious plans to build out its AI data centers, aiming for a capacity of somewhere between 5 and 7.9 gigawatts by 2030. A rather impressive undertaking, wouldn’t you agree? Trading volume, too, was rather brisk, reaching 45.4 million shares – a good 55% above its recent average. Since its initial public offering, the stock has enjoyed a positively dizzying ascent, growing by 172% – a performance that would make even the most seasoned investor raise a delighted eyebrow.