Why Arthur Hayes Thinks the AI Bubble Bursting Could Spark a Crypto Bull Market episode artwork

EPISODE · May 12, 2026 · 57 MIN

Why Arthur Hayes Thinks the AI Bubble Bursting Could Spark a Crypto Bull Market

from Unchained · host Laura Shin

Arthur Hayes sees one force driving markets right now: governments printing money to finance AI and war. He explains why that ends with Bitcoin much higher — and what could derail it. ======================================================== Thank you to our sponsor! ⁠Coinbase One⁠: Get 20% off the first year of your Coinbase One annual plan at ⁠coinbase.com/unchained⁠. ======================================================== Maelstrom CIO Arthur Hayes called the Tehran toll booth scenario in writing — and now it's playing out. Sovereign nations are waking up to the fact that dollar assets don't buy oil when the strait is closed.  On this episode, Hayes joins Laura Shin to explain why the structural unwinding of petrodollar recycling forces the Fed to print, why an AI deflationary bust could rival 2008 in severity before central banks step in, and why that path ends with Bitcoin substantially higher.  He also breaks down his current highest-conviction positions: Hyperliquid, Zcash, and NEAR, and explains why he's deploying into what he calls maximum disillusionment in private crypto equity. Host: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Laura Shin⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠, Host / Unchained Guests: Arthur Hayes — CIO, Maelstrom Timestamps 🚀 0:00 Why Arthur thinks all wars, including the Iran War, are inflationary 🌍 3:01 How the Iran war is causing demand for US treasuries to decline 💙 10:17 Get 20% off the first year of your Coinbase One annual plan at coinbase.com/unchained 🪖 12:18 How the Iran War is eroding the dominance of the petrodollar 📊 16:11 Why Arthur watches WTI futures — and when 'all hell breaks loose' ⏸️ 18:16 Why Arthur considered Q1 “a no-trade zone” and his approach to Q2 🏦 20:20 Kevin Warsh as Fed chair: why Arthur says he's a neutral variable 🌏 22:43 How Asia perceives the Iran war and the US-China AI race 🤖 26:28 Two catalysts that Arthur believes could end the AI bull market 💥 31:42 What Arthur sees as a coming AI agentic deflationary bust 😂 36:32 How Arthur actually invests in AI stocks: buy first, research later 🔵 38:42 The Hype thesis: why Hyperliquid got tokenomics right ⚖️ 45:11 Why Zcash is Arthur's largest position outside Bitcoin 🔗 48:24 NEAR as the next shitcoin: the Zcash-Near integration thesis 🔐 50:26 On-chain risk, the Kelpout hack, and what teams get wrong 🏢 53:12 Maelstrom update: fundraising and why now is the right time to deploy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Arthur Hayes sees one force driving markets right now: governments printing money to finance AI and war. He explains why that ends with Bitcoin much higher — and what could derail it. ======================================================== Thank you to our sponsor! ⁠Coinbase One⁠: Get 20% off the first year of your Coinbase One annual plan at ⁠coinbase.com/unchained⁠. ======================================================== Maelstrom CIO Arthur Hayes called the Tehran toll booth scenario in writing — and now it's playing out. Sovereign nations are waking up to the fact that dollar assets don't buy oil when the strait is closed.  On this episode, Hayes joins Laura Shin to explain why the structural unwinding of petrodollar recycling forces the Fed to print, why an AI deflationary bust could rival 2008 in severity before central banks step in, and why that path ends with Bitcoin substantially higher.  He also breaks down his current highest-conviction positions: Hyperliquid, Zcash, and NEAR, and explains why he's deploying into what he calls maximum disillusionment in private crypto equity. Host: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Laura Shin⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠, Host / Unchained Guests: Arthur Hayes — CIO, Maelstrom Timestamps 🚀 0:00 Why Arthur thinks all wars, including the Iran War, are inflationary 🌍 3:01 How the Iran war is causing demand for US treasuries to decline 💙 10:17 Get 20% off the first year of your Coinbase One annual plan at coinbase.com/unchained 🪖 12:18 How the Iran War is eroding the dominance of the petrodollar 📊 16:11 Why Arthur watches WTI futures — and when 'all hell breaks loose' ⏸️ 18:16 Why Arthur considered Q1 “a no-trade zone” and his approach to Q2 🏦 20:20 Kevin Warsh as Fed chair: why Arthur says he's a neutral variable 🌏 22:43 How Asia perceives the Iran war and the US-China AI race 🤖 26:28 Two catalysts that Arthur believes could end the AI bull market 💥 31:42 What Arthur sees as a coming AI agentic deflationary bust 😂 36:32 How Arthur actually invests in AI stocks: buy first, research later 🔵 38:42 The Hype thesis: why Hyperliquid got tokenomics right ⚖️ 45:11 Why Zcash is Arthur's largest position outside Bitcoin 🔗 48:24 NEAR as the next shitcoin: the Zcash-Near integration thesis 🔐 50:26 On-chain risk, the Kelpout hack, and what teams get wrong 🏢 53:12 Maelstrom update: fundraising and why now is the right time to deploy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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Why Arthur Hayes Thinks the AI Bubble Bursting Could Spark a Crypto Bull Market

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This episode was published on May 12, 2026.

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Arthur Hayes sees one force driving markets right now: governments printing money to finance AI and war. He explains why that ends with Bitcoin much higher — and what could derail it. ======================================================== Thank...

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