AI capitalism provokes the next financial crisis (German) (www.boersen-zeitung.de)

European and U.S. analysts are sounding the alarm that a self-referential, hyper‑capitalized AI boom could trigger not just an equity bubble but a broader financial crisis. Portfolio manager Jacques‑Aurélien Marcireau (Edmond de Rothschild) and academics like Hilary J. Allen warn that massive, often circular investments—trillions poured into data centers and compute, tech firms investing in each other, and headline deals such as OpenAI’s reportedly $300B Oracle compute contract—have created high concentration, complacency and mispriced risk reminiscent of the dot‑com and 2007–09 crises. Technically, the danger is leverage plus correlation: banks and funds are financing large data‑center projects via opaque funds, hedge‑fund leverage is at historic highs (reported rises through 2024 and another ~25% into 2025), and AI and crypto share narratives and counterparty exposure. A sharp repricing could force margin calls, forced sales, stablecoin runs and contagion across non‑bank finance. Winners after a reset are likely to be data‑rich incumbents (pharma, insurers, research institutions), vertical AI software providers, and consumers as compute costs fall—while builders of infrastructure, highly leveraged funds and some banks could take heavy losses. The piece highlights regulatory gaps, geopolitical headwinds and limited policy firepower that could complicate crisis management if the AI funding bubble bursts.