To The Moon

When Does a Tech Company Stop Being “Just Tech”?

Answer: When Warren Buffett finally buys it.

Berkshire Hathaway quietly revealed a new USD 4.3 billion stake in Alphabet, now one of its top 10 holdings.

On paper, this looks like a simple portfolio move.

In reality, it’s much more meaningful.

This investment is:

a public admission of one of Buffett’s biggest long-standing mistakes,

a window into Berkshire’s future after Buffett, and

a sign that the definition of “value” in modern markets has fundamentally changed.

Let’s unpack this.

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1. A 20-Year Apology Letter — Delivered Through a 13F Filing

For two decades, Buffett and the late Charlie Munger openly regretted missing Google.

They were early users of Google’s ad engine. They saw its power. They knew the economics. But Buffett refused to invest because he believed tech was “outside his circle of competence.”

He often joked:

> “We screwed up.”

Buying Alphabet now — at age 95 — is more symbolic than financial.

It’s Buffett finally closing an old chapter.

It’s humility in action.

It’s him correcting a mistake he’s spoken about for years, even if belatedly.

This isn’t just adding a stock.

It’s setting the record straight before he leaves the stage.

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2. When Tech Matures Into Infrastructure

Why was Alphabet off-limits for 20 years, yet acceptable today?

Because Alphabet isn’t really “tech” anymore — at least not in the volatile, speculative sense Buffett dislikes.

Alphabet now behaves more like digital infrastructure, with characteristics Buffett has always loved:

Reliable cash flows

Search and YouTube are global toll booths. Users don’t churn. Pricing power is immense.

Massive user lock-in

People don’t “switch” search engines. Schools, governments, developers — the whole world — run on Google services.

Structural dominance

Cloud, ads, maps, Android, Chrome — each is a multi-billion-dollar business with deep moats.

Long-term relevance

Google is one of the few companies with the compute, data, and distribution to compete seriously in AI.

Alphabet today looks less like a fast-moving tech bet, and more like a combination of:

a utility,

a media empire,

an AI research lab,

and a critical commercial infrastructure provider.

This is the kind of predictability Berkshire thrives on.

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3. The Apple Precedent — And Buffett’s Mental Shift

Buffett’s investment in Apple in 2016 was a turning point.

He bought Apple only after reframing it as:

> “A consumer products company, not a tech company.”

That opened the door for a broader philosophical shift:

Tech is no longer chaotic and unpredictable.

Mature tech behaves like classic value businesses.

Moats today are made of software, ecosystems, and data — not railroads and factories.

Alphabet is the natural continuation of that logic.

You’re not buying “search ads”.

You’re buying the core infrastructure of the digital economy.

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4. A Signal From the Next Generation of Berkshire

Most observers believe the Alphabet stake was initiated by Todd Combs or Ted Weschler, the two investment managers poised to shape Berkshire after Buffett.

This matters.

It tells us:

Berkshire’s core philosophy (moats + cash flows) remains intact,

but the definition of a “moat” has expanded,

and Berkshire’s next era will include more large tech platforms.

Tech isn’t a sector anymore.

It’s the substrate for every sector.

And Berkshire is adjusting accordingly — slowly but deliberately.

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5. The Real Story: Selling Apple, Buying Alphabet

In the same quarter Berkshire bought Alphabet, it also trimmed its massive Apple position.

That wasn’t bearish.

It was simple, disciplined portfolio management.

Apple had grown too large — nearly half of Berkshire’s public equity portfolio.

Reducing Apple and adding Alphabet is:

diversification,

risk management,

and taking profits from a giant winner to fund a new moat.

This is classic Berkshire.

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6. The Last Lesson Buffett May Be Teaching Us

Buffett’s most enduring lesson has never been about stock picking.

It’s about how to think.

Buying Alphabet in 2025, after ignoring it for two decades, reinforces several timeless principles:

Stay humble

Even legends acknowledge mistakes.

Stay flexible

Markets change. Industries evolve. So should your framework.

Stay rational

Correct old errors when new facts emerge.

Stay focused on the long term

Alphabet’s durability — not its quarter-to-quarter headlines — is what matters.

When even Buffett adapts at 95, the real message to the rest of us is simple:

> Never let old rules stop you from recognising new moats.

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