Buffett isn’t ignoring AI—he’s just investing with patience. Here’s why slowing down might be your smartest move.
“We’re not the fastest. But we are the most deliberate.”
— Warren Buffett, 2025 Berkshire Hathaway Shareholders Meeting
If it has “AI” in the name, it’s probably surging.
ChatGPT. Nvidia. Tesla. Microsoft. Palantir.
Even small-cap startups you’ve never heard of are suddenly “AI-powered”—and their stocks are soaring.
But Warren Buffett?
He’s sitting still. Calm as ever.
When asked at this year’s Shareholders Meeting why Berkshire wasn’t aggressively buying into AI, he simply said:
“We’re not in the speed game. We’re in the good decision game.”
Hype Brings Attention—But It Also Brings Risk
Yes, AI is changing everything. And yes, it will shape the future.
But not every exciting technology makes for a good investment.
Buffett reminded shareholders that during the dot-com boom, investors rushed into Yahoo, AOL, Pets.com...
Most of them disappeared.
“Just because something is exciting,” he warned, “doesn’t mean it’s investable.”
And the data backs him up.
According to Goldman Sachs (2025 Q1 Tech Outlook), over 70% of AI-labeled companies listed since 2023 are not yet profitable, and more than half are trading at forward P/E ratios above 100.
Palantir, a high-profile AI stock, recently reported U.S. commercial revenue growth of +71% year-over-year and raised 2025 full-year guidance to reflect 36% YoY growth【Palantir IR, 2025】.
However, its forward valuation still exceeds 200x earnings, leading analysts at Morningstar to issue a "caution due to overextension."
Buffett’s point: momentum isn’t the same as value.
Buffett Isn’t Anti-Tech. He’s Anti-FOMO.
Some say Buffett “missed” tech. But he’s held Apple for years.
It now makes up over 40% of Berkshire’s equity portfolio【Berkshire Hathaway Q1 2025 13F Report】.
He’s not against innovation. He just waits.
Buffett only invests when a company:
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Has a clear business model
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Generates consistent profit
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Produces reliable free cash flow
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Treats shareholders well
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Leads its industry
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Trades at a reasonable price
Apple met every one of those criteria.
And that’s why he invested—not because it was trendy, but because it was durable.
I’m Choosing to Slow Down Too
Like many of you, I’ve felt the pressure.
“You’ll regret not buying Nvidia.”
“Get into AI ETFs before they triple.”
“You’re missing the next Amazon!”
It’s loud out there. I get it.
But I keep coming back to Buffett’s words:
“We’re not the fastest. But we are the most deliberate.”
So I’m sticking to a checklist—one I’ve built to help me cut through the hype:
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Is the business model understandable?
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Is the company already profitable?
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Is there strong, sustainable cash flow?
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Is it the industry leader—or close to it?
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Will this company still be around in 10 years?
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Is the current price attractive relative to its value?
Because no matter how futuristic the product sounds, investing is still about buying real businesses.
Chase Principles, Not Trends
Buffett doesn’t chase the next shiny object. He waits. He watches.
Then, when the dust settles, he moves—with confidence, not FOMO.
“We’re not the fastest. But we are the most deliberate.”
In a world moving at breakneck speed, slowing down may be your biggest advantage.
Because the smartest investors aren’t always the first to act—they’re the last to panic.
As The Psychology of Money author Morgan Housel puts it:
“Doing well with money has a little to do with how smart you are and a lot to do with how you behave.”
This post was inspired by Warren Buffett’s remarks at the 2025 Berkshire Hathaway Shareholders Meeting.
While the world is chasing AI stocks like lottery tickets, he reminds us to anchor ourselves in business logic, not buzzwords.
In the next post,
we’ll dig into another Buffett insight:
“Move fast—but only when the time is right.”
We’ll explore how patience and timing work together,
and why sitting still most of the time is exactly what allows you to move boldly when the moment finally comes.
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