Ideas
AI capex financing supports semiconductors.
High-beta risk assets and semiconductors are being supported by the belief that AI capex can keep getting financed, especially around OpenAI, so as long as markets see the financing in place, semiconductor companies can beat and lead the tape until financing limits appear.
Crypto 24/7; Bitcoin and alts rally.
Crypto and tokenized markets trade 24/7, so they provided real-time risk management during the Maduro raid while traditional equity markets were asleep; Bitcoin's rally on a geopolitical event instead of a pullback showed its fundamental strength and is positive for Bitcoin and altcoins.
Trump wins, sanctions relief lift Bitcoin.
Bitcoin is outperforming because the Venezuela operation raises confidence that Trump will get what he wants, sanctions relief may reduce forced selling from sanctioned countries, and a potential seizure of Maduro's crypto could jumpstart a US sovereign wealth or Bitcoin reserve.
Trump success lifts Russell 2000.
Russell 2000 and high-beta are outperforming as markets bet Trump will get what he wants after the Venezuela operation, supporting small caps and high-beta risk.
Oil and natural gas stay low.
The Venezuela action has not changed the energy calculus yet; natural gas is falling sharply and oil prices are low and staying low, implying weak oil and natural gas prices.
US pivot lifts Latin American stocks.
US Monroe Doctrine/North-South alliance strategy, swap lines, and supply-chain security near the US can make Latin and South American stock markets perform phenomenally well; Venezuela, Mexico, and Cuba may open, and Chinese naval power cannot threaten the region meaningfully.
Production-for-security drives rare earths.
Rare earths and critical minerals are a key production-for-security theme; the US government and private equity are kickstarting mining and refining, reversing de-industrialization, and Venezuela may be more interesting than Greenland for these resources.
US investment lifts Intel.
US government-led production-for-security investment and onshoring will benefit Intel, which should continue to do well as US investment returns.
Europe left in the dust.
Europe risks being left in the dust because it failed to seize Russian frozen reserves, lacks a single decision-maker, adds little to Ukraine, and is slow to adopt production-for-security domestic energy; European equities are less attractive.
BP and Shell phenomenal buys later.
BP and Shell will be phenomenal buys, probably a year from now, once Europe stops criticizing energy companies and recognizes it needs them to provide electricity for data centers and production.
Strong US stabilizes markets.
Strong US power projection after Venezuela puts adversaries back in their box and reduces geopolitical risk; a strong America leads to a more stable geopolitical environment, which is positive for markets.
European banks lead rotation.
International European banks such as Deutsche Bank and HSBC have performed extremely well and remain attractive on value and earnings growth, while Mag 7 has stopped outrunning the S&P, supporting a rotation into international names.
Mexico benefits from friend-shoring.
Mexico is a beneficiary of friend-shoring and is an ally to the US as an alternative production base to China, supporting Latin American promise.
Gold bid as bond alternative.
Trump's tariff war created a bid for alternatives to bonds like gold, and that trend may continue because value and earnings growth remain attractive.
Austin Campbell
Founder, Zero Knowledge Group; Co-host Bits+Bips (Unchained); Adj. Prof. NYU Stern
25:40
Europe investing less attractive.
Europe is uniquely vulnerable as the US becomes more transactional and focuses on the Western Hemisphere; it lacks tech and exports the US wants, is antagonistic on tech and speech regulation, and could face tariffs or retaliation, making European equities less attractive.
Austin Campbell
Founder, Zero Knowledge Group; Co-host Bits+Bips (Unchained); Adj. Prof. NYU Stern
35:01
US power projection lifts stablecoins.
US power projection and economic partnerships in Venezuela and Latin America should increase access to dollar liquidity, and since oil is priced in dollars, US dollar stablecoin adoption is a logical growth path over time.
Stablecoin adoption grows globally.
US dollar stablecoin adoption will inevitably grow across the developing world and accelerate in Venezuela as people seek dollar access and dictators lose control of local currencies; stablecoin use and size will not decline.
China rare-earth curb risks US stocks.
If China retaliates by restricting processed and refined rare earths and critical minerals, it would be bad for US large-cap stocks at least near term, though it would create urgency for processing companies.
Love electricity production buildout.
Electricity prices will become a dominant political and economic issue, and he loves anything associated with electricity production because data centers, AI, crypto, and electrification require a massive buildout.
Solar and batteries scale fastest.
Solar and batteries will be key to meeting electricity demand because solar is the only technology that can scale in one to two years, even if Trump initially fights it.
Avoid wind energy.
He would not bet on wind because Trump hates it and he has questions about wind economics and politics.
GE Vernova benefits from turbine bottleneck.
GE Vernova may be the only major gas turbine maker and has a massive backlog and waitlist, making it a bottleneck beneficiary of the electricity buildout.
Nuclear/SMRs are portfolio backbone.
Nuclear, including SMRs, is a big part of his portfolio because small reactors on army bases can bypass regulatory hurdles, and nuclear can become the backbone of US power in about ten years.
This Unchained (Chopping Block) video, published January 07, 2026,
features Ram Ahluwalia, Chris Perkins, Peter Tchir, Austin Campbell
discussing SMH, BTC, ALTCOINS, IWM, WTI, UNG, ILF, REMX, INTC, VGK, BP, SHELL, SPY, DB, HSBC, EWW, GLD, US dollar stablecoins, US large-cap stocks, XLU, SOLAR, Battery storage, FAN, GEV, NUCLEAR, URA.
23 trade ideas extracted by AI with direction and confidence scoring.
Speakers:
Ram Ahluwalia,
Chris Perkins,
Peter Tchir,
Austin Campbell
· Tickers:
SMH,
BTC,
ALTCOINS,
IWM,
WTI,
UNG,
ILF,
REMX,
INTC,
VGK,
BP,
SHELL,
SPY,
DB,
HSBC,
EWW,
GLD,
US dollar stablecoins,
US large-cap stocks,
XLU,
SOLAR,
Battery storage,
FAN,
GEV,
NUCLEAR,
URA
