Warren Buffett's Successor Has Billions in This Cloud Titan
2026-10-11 18:30
•Keithen Drury •The Motley Fool
•••• ••••••• Axe Cap view
Berkshire’s Bet on Alphabet Signals AI Opportunity for SA Investors
Greg Abel’s move to increase Berkshire Hathaway’s stake in Alphabet highlights a growing faith in cloud and AI growth, a trend worth noting on the JSE.
Warren Buffett’s successor, Greg Abel, is doubling down on Alphabet, making it Berkshire Hathaway’s third-largest holding. The appeal? A very clear core business—online advertising—and a cloud computing division that’s gaining critical mass alongside strategic AI investments. For South African investors, the story aligns with two themes: growing tech exposure and how to play the global AI boom without overpaying. Alphabet’s valuation may look premium compared to some peers, but that premium buys access to innovation without the curveballs of start-ups. Locally, this underlines why counters like Naspers and Prosus, which are deeply tied to global tech trends, deserve a closer look. The rand, currently hovering around R18.50 to the dollar, could be a wildcard: a weaker rand inflates the rand cost of these offshore tech plays. If tech valuations stumble or AI hype fades, these calls could backfire, so timing and position sizing matter. this is just our opinion and not financial advice
Watch Prosus closely as a conduit to global tech innovation, keeping in mind rand volatility; trim exposure if dollar strength threatens local returns.
- Prosus
- Naspers
- USD/ZAR
- Tech sector correction
- Rand volatility impacting offshore valuations
7/10
Greg Abel, Warren Buffett's successor at Berkshire Hathaway, has continued investing in Alphabet, which has become the firm's third-largest holding. The article argues Alphabet is an attractive investment due to its simple core business model (advertising marketplace), growing cloud computing segment, and strategic investments in AI companies. Despite trading at a premium valuation compared to some peers, Alphabet offers Berkshire exposure to cutting-edge technologies like AI without requiring direct expertise in those areas.
Our take is based on reporting first published by The Motley Fool.