Visser Likens S&P 500 Firms to Bonds, Options

Jordi Visser says most S&P 500 companies resemble bonds while only eight resemble call options, citing AI's erosion of competitive advantages.

Updated on Nov. 9, 2026 in Corporate Finance

Visser Likens S&P 500 Firms to Bonds, Options

Live Poll

Do you think AI is making the economy better or worse for ordinary people?

In a discussion posted November 7 on Anthony Pompliano's X account, Jordi Visser compared 492 S&P 500 companies to bonds and eight to call options. He argued AI is eroding corporate competitive advantages and concentrating stock market growth in a few large companies.

Why it matters

The framework suggests investors may need to distinguish companies that generate steady cash from those with substantial growth potential when assessing U.S. equity holdings. Visser's view that AI is pressuring technology leaders to spend heavily on uncertain payoffs bears on how investors weigh the largest index constituents.

Visser's classification places 492 of the 500 S&P 500 companies in the bond category and eight in the call-option category, a split first attributed to Mark Andreessen two years earlier. The discussion does not specify the financial metrics used to assign companies to either group.

The players

Jordi Visser

Jordi Visser is an investor and commentator who argued in this discussion that AI is eroding corporate moats and concentrating market growth.

Mark Andreessen

Mark Andreessen is a venture capitalist and co-founder of Andreessen Horowitz who originated the observation that most S&P 500 companies resemble bonds.

Anthony Pompliano

Anthony Pompliano is an entrepreneur and podcast host whose X account published the discussion with Visser.

The details

Visser spoke with Anthony Pompliano in a discussion posted on Pompliano's X account on November 7. He used Ford and GM to distinguish companies that keep selling products from businesses with strong growth prospects, and said he did not believe Nebius or CoreWeave could grow tenfold, viewing both as closer to bonds than call options.

Two years before the November 7 discussion: Mark Andreessen first made the 492 bonds, eight call options observation.
November 7, 2026: Visser's discussion with Anthony Pompliano was posted on X.
2026: Visser says AI's negative effects began to emerge this year.

Market Dynamics

Visser builds on the bonds-versus-call-options classification Mark Andreessen introduced in 2024, extending it with the argument that AI is dissolving the competitive moats that once let companies sustain growth. His framing places the concentration of market gains in a handful of large firms within a longer debate over whether index-level returns reflect broad corporate expansion.

Investors holding a broad index fund may own a large share of companies Visser classifies as bond-like, which could affect expected returns if growth concentrates in a few firms. Investors weighing individual holdings such as Ford over a decade may need to consider whether those positions can match S&P 500 returns.

The takeaway

Investors may find it useful to ask whether a holding is generating steady cash or offering growth that could compound, since the two call for different expectations. Visser's argument suggests that distinction may matter more as AI reshapes competitive advantages.