Public transcript

Alex Karp on 'Big Short' investor Michael Burry: 'Bats--- crazy' for bets against Palantir, Nvidia

By: CNBC Television
Length: 10 min
Language: English
Text from: the video's captions
Transcribed: 12 October 2026

Read the full transcript Open on YouTube

Notes in English.

Summary

Palantir CEO Alex Karp reacts to the company's strong third quarter results and to short seller Michael Burry's large bet against Palantir and Nvidia. Karp argues Palantir is misunderstood by the expert class while retail investors have been rewarded, and calls Burry's short 'batshit crazy.' He defends Palantir's growth numbers and says the real questions for AI are whether the economics work and how much GDP growth reaches workers.

Key points

Palantir reported third quarter results above expectations and issued better than expected fourth quarter guidance, though shares were down pre-market.
Karp calls Michael Burry's roughly $912 million short position against Palantir 'batshit crazy' and suggests it may even be market manipulation to exit a position.
Karp cites a 'rule of 40' score of 114, US commercial growth of 121%, and 77% aggregate US growth off a $4.5 billion base.
He argues short sellers have repeatedly been wrong on Palantir, which they called overvalued at 10 and at 20.
Karp says retail investors, not the expert class, backed Palantir and got venture-like returns for the first time since World War II.
He frames Burry's short as a bet against AI itself, since Palantir and Nvidia are the companies actually making money in the space.
Karp says AI will only avoid being a bubble if every part of the stack creates more value than it charges.
He raises the question of 'worker available GDP' — how much AI-driven GDP growth reaches workers, which he says Palantir enhances on the battlefield and factory floor.

Questions it answers

00:00Blowout earnings, down shares

What did Palantir just report and how did the stock react?

Palantir reported third quarter results above expectations in a big way and issued better than expected fourth quarter guidance, but shares were down in the pre-market.

Q3 results beat expectations across the board.
Q4 guidance came in above expectations.
Shares fell pre-market despite the results.

00:38Why Palantir is misunderstood

Why does Karp think he and Palantir are misunderstood?

Karp says Palantir is an anti-playbook company that explodes every assumption experts hold about building software. He says retail investors, not the expert class, backed the company and got venture-like returns for the first time since World War II.

Palantir is described as a sui generis company only possible in America.
Experts still sit on the sidelines saying the success can't be true.
Karp identifies as dyslexic and left of center but says Democrats are no longer progressive.

03:00Short sellers and Burry's bet

What does Karp say about Michael Burry's short position?

Karp calls Burry's roughly $912 million short 'batshit crazy' and suggests it may be market manipulation to exit a position. He says short sellers have been wrong at every stage, calling the stock overvalued at 10 and at 20.

Burry's short is about $912 million against Palantir and Nvidia.
Karp reads it as a short against the AI revolution.
He says Palantir triples down on results partly to make short sellers poorer.

04:31The growth numbers

What numbers does Karp point to in Palantir's defense?

He cites a rule of 40 score of 114, US commercial growth of 121% off almost a $1.5 billion run rate, and 77% aggregate US growth off a $4.5 billion base, comparing the score to Michael Phelps or Michael Jordan level.

Rule of 40 score of 114 versus a roughly 50 'Olympic grade' benchmark.
US commercial growing 121%.
Aggregate US growth of 77% off a $4.5 billion base.

07:46Is AI a bubble?

How does Karp assess the broader AI space?

He says the key questions are the addressable market for products that actually work, and whether every part of the stack creates more value than it charges — if not, it will be a bubble. He notes the two companies Burry is shorting are the ones making all the money.

Palantir focuses on the part of the market where AI works and is quantifiable.
Trader optimality — value created exceeding cost — is required to avoid a bubble.
Karp finds shorting the profitable companies 'super weird.'

09:33Worker available GDP

What does Karp say about workers and GDP growth?

He asks what part of GDP growth is available for workers, and says Palantir enhances people writing scripts for complicated operations, building batteries, and working on factory floors. He says these two questions will define the country's future.

'Worker available GDP' is how much AI-driven growth reaches workers.
Palantir's product enhances workers on battlefields and factory floors.
Karp says most GDP growth in the country is because of AI.

Notes

Earnings and the Short Seller Debate

Palantir reported third quarter results above expectations and issued better than expected fourth quarter guidance, though shares were down pre-market.
Michael Burry has a roughly $912 million short position against Palantir and Nvidia, which Karp calls 'batshit crazy' and suggests could be market manipulation to exit a position.
Karp notes short sellers called Palantir overvalued at 10 and at 20, and says every time they short the company, Palantir 'triples down' on delivering better numbers, partly to make them poorer.

Why Karp Says Palantir Is Misunderstood

Karp describes Palantir as an 'anti-playbook' company that 'explodes every assumption' of how experts build software businesses.
He says the people who invested were retail investors using their own money, while the expert class sat on the sidelines; average Americans got venture returns for arguably the first time since World War II.
He positions himself as a dyslexic, left-of-center figure who sticks up for progressive values, arguing the Democrats are no longer progressive.

The Numbers Karp Cites

A 'rule of 40' score of 114, which he compares to a Michael Phelps or Michael Jordan-level score, noting roughly 50 is Olympic grade.
US commercial growth of 121% off almost a $1.5 billion run rate, and 77% aggregate US growth off a $4.5 billion base.
He says Palantir has been right on major decisions for almost 20 years by making pragmatic decisions that create 'unfair advantages' for America and its allies.

Views on the AI Space

Karp says the two subtle issues in AI are the addressable market and the addressable market for products that actually work, growing both top and bottom line.
He says over time every part of the AI stack will have to create more value than it charges, or it will be a bubble.
He finds it 'super weird' that the two companies Burry is shorting — Palantir and Nvidia — are the ones making all the money in AI.

Worker Available GDP

Karp asks what part of GDP growth is available for workers, calling it 'worker available GDP.'
He says Palantir enhances workers on the battlefield, in battery building, and on the factory floor, and these two questions will define the country's future.

Text from the video's own captions. Summary and notes written by AI from the transcript, so check anything important against the recording.