July 31, 2026
Siri sits back with popcorn
Apple Will 'Watch Everything Burn' When AI Bubble Bursts
Apple may just sit back, cash in, and let its AI rivals melt down
TLDR: Ed Zitron says if the artificial intelligence boom bursts, Apple is in a safer spot than its rivals and may simply watch the mess unfold. Commenters were split between cheering Apple’s restraint, dunking on Zitron’s past predictions, and launching a side battle over whether Google actually comes out on top.
Apple is being cast as the cool kid at the edge of the party while everyone else allegedly sets money on fire chasing artificial intelligence. In the MacRumors interview, critic Ed Zitron argued that if the artificial intelligence boom crashes, Apple probably won’t be the one sobbing into a pile of broken servers. His big claim? Apple spent less than rivals like Google, Microsoft, and Amazon, so it could simply watch the chaos, maybe grab a few bargains, and keep selling iPhones like nothing happened. Very calm. Very smug. Very Apple.
But the real fireworks were in the comments. One camp was practically begging Apple to stay out of the artificial intelligence race altogether, with one user saying that alone would have won their loyalty — then immediately adding it’s already too late. Another commenter went full eye-roll, calling Zitron a grumpy doom prophet and listing his old anti-artificial intelligence predictions like receipts in a courtroom drama. Meanwhile, someone else barged in with a bold plot twist: Google will win the artificial intelligence war, possibly thanks to Sergey Brin storming in and telling managers to shut up and follow the vision. Casual!
And then there was the comedy. A reader got hilariously hung up on the article’s cliffhanger ending, basically screaming, “What points did he miss?!” while also refusing to pay a $100 monthly subscription to find out. That mood — curious, skeptical, cheap — may be the most relatable take of all.
Key Points
- •MacRumors interviewed Ed Zitron about how a potential AI infrastructure bust could affect Apple.
- •Zitron said Apple is relatively insulated because it has spent less on data centers than Microsoft, Google, and Amazon.
- •He said Apple would likely experience little change and could "sit on the sidelines" if the AI bubble deflates.
- •Zitron said Apple might make selective acquisitions during a downturn, though it could also choose to do nothing.
- •He argued that Apple should continue investing in Vision Pro miniaturization, calling the product commercially weak but strategically interesting and future-forward.