TIVP036: Dell (DELL): Overlooked AI Growth Story? w/ Daniel Mahncke & Shawn O’Malley
The Intrinsic Value Podcast - The Investor’s Podcast Network
Intro
This chapter explores Dell's significant growth in the AI sector, highlighting its role as an essential infrastructure provider amid the dominance of traditional PC sales. It encourages listeners to reassess Dell's potential as a major contender in the evolving AI landscape.
Daniel Mahncke and Shawn O’Malley dive into Dell Technologies, the legacy PC giant that’s quietly become one of the largest suppliers of AI infrastructure in the world. Once seen as a low-growth hardware player, Dell now sits at the heart of the data center buildout — shipping billions of dollars worth of GPU-powered servers to customers like xAI, Meta, and Microsoft. With a growing AI backlog, enterprise trust, and deep global reach, Dell might be one of the most overlooked players in today’s AI cycle.
IN THIS EPISODE, YOU’LL LEARN
00:00 – Intro 01:09 - How Dell became a global PC behemoth. 5:27 - Why Dell managed to outcompete IBM. 10:56 - How Dell’s business is structured. 14:30 - Why the PC Market is struggling to grow. 20:36 - What role AI Servers play in Dell’s future. 47:23 - Whether Dell has a moat. 54:09 - How profitable Dell is and how it allocates capital. 01:11:15 - Why hardware is such a tough business. 01:14:11 - Whether Dell is attractively valued at its current levels. 01:14:11 - Whether Shawn & Daniel add DELL to The Intrinsic Value Portfolio.
*Disclaimer: Slight timestamp discrepancies may occur due to podcast platform differences.
BOOKS AND RESOURCES
- Get smarter about valuing businesses in just a few minutes each week through our newsletter, The Intrinsic Value Newsletter.
- Sign Up for The Intrinsic Value Community.
- Norges Bank Interviews with Michael Dell.
- Dell Presentation on the AI PC Revolution.
- Jensen Huang, Michael Dell Interview on Nvidia and Dell Partnership
- 3rd Party Report on Dell’s Moat.
- Explore our previous Intrinsic Value breakdowns: Uber, Nike, Reddit, Nintendo, Airbnb, AutoZone, Alphabet, Ulta, John Deere, and Madison Square Garden Sports.
- Check out the books mentioned in the podcast here.
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