Warren Buffett and Charlie Munger are having a viral moment following Jensen Huang’s departure as Nvidia CEO.
The AI chipmaker’s founder stepped down Thursday following a scandal-filled week surrounding his personal life and relationship with an alleged Chinese spy.
The dayslong saga prompted many online commentators to share famous warnings from the former chairman and late vice-chairman of Berkshire Hathaway.
“My partner Charlie says: there’s only 3 ways that a smart person can go broke — he says ‘liquor, ladies and leverage'” – Warren Buffet
https://t.co/r9DOOfcnEZ
— Financelot (@FinanceLancelot) November 12, 2026
“My partner Charlie says that there’s only three ways that a smart person can go broke: liquor, ladies, and leverage,” Buffett said in a 2018 interview.
Charlie Munger seeing his “Liquor, Ladies, Leverage” quote being used more times in a 72 hours timeframe than any other time in human history https://t.co/NA5yNOOKdL
— Trung Phan (@TrungTPhan) November 11, 2026
“Now, the truth is the first two he just added because they start with ‘l’ — it’s leverage,” Buffett added.
Charlie Munger once said liquor, leverage, and ladies are the downfall of men.
Everyone thought AI would blow up over leverage, but no one was prepared for it to be women.
— Anthony Pompliano 🌪 (@APompliano) November 11, 2026
Huang admitted to being “unfaithful” to his wife following reports that he had an affair with a suspected Chinese spy. He resigned as CEO after fresh claims that he had an affair with a subordinate.
Charlie Munger once said smart people go broke in three ways. Liquor, ladies, and leverage. https://t.co/6Ip17Gs9XH
— ProblemSniper (@ProblemSniper) November 12, 2026
Munger’s caution about the risks of romantic entanglements has even been translated into other languages in recent days:
«Solo hay tres formas en las que una persona inteligente puede arruinarse: el alcohol, las mujeres y el apalancamiento».
Charlie Munger https://t.co/rYsqGdBRM0
— Roberto Chamorro (@robchamo) November 8, 2026
X users have also been relaying a classic piece of Buffett wisdom about how reputations are hard-won and easily lost.
“It takes 20 years to build a reputation and 5 minutes to ruin it.”
Buffett tried to tell them all and no one listened
— Ben Carlson (@awealthofcs) November 12, 2026
Buffett has been issuing similar refrains for decades. He famously warned Salomon Brothers employees as their interim chairman in 1991: “Lose money for the firm, and I will be understanding. Lose a shred of reputation for the firm, and I will be ruthless.”
Buffett has similarly told the managers of Berkshire subsidiaries: “We can afford to lose money—even a lot of money. But we can’t afford to lose reputation—even a shred of reputation.”
“It takes 20 years to build a reputation and five minutes to ruin it.”
— Warren Buffett https://t.co/wZcic1lkQx
— Brew Markets (@brewmarkets) November 12, 2026
The legendary investor has also famously advised people to never do anything they wouldn’t want printed on the front page of their hometown newspaper for all their friends and family to see.
Munger, Buffett’s right-hand man for over 45 years, died at age 99 in November 2023. Buffett, now 96, stepped down as Berkshire’s CEO at the end of last year, and as its chairman in September.
Berkshire stock has rallied strongly in recent days as investors have soured on AI stocks like Nvidia amid concerns about overinvestment and fears of a regulatory crackdown.
The Class B shares have jumped 13% in the past month to trade at $590, close to a record high. Nvidia stock is down 27% over the same period.
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