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Traders have this week watched shares of Allbirds rise sharply and then fall back, though not all the way to their starting point, as market sentiment swung on renewed hopes tied to the Strait of Hormuz and broader risk appetite.
The S&P 500 on Friday topped 7,100 for the first time, helped by a temporary reopening of the Strait of Hormuz that revived “animal spirits.” Observers, both lay and professional, said the quick turnaround in U.S. stocks—and the rapid revival of previously struggling or “left-for-dead” names such as Allbirds—appears “not unusual.”
Allbirds (BIRD) surged almost 880% at this week’s peaks after the flagging shoe brand announced it would step into the artificial intelligence space. A micro-cap called Myseum (MYSE), which reported $550 in revenue last year, also pivoted into AI and saw its stock rise. Both shares have pulled back from their highs but remain well above where they started.
Some market participants framed the rally as a continuation of optimism that had been building after earlier commentary that U.S. stocks looked cheap. If investors had acted on those views in March, the article notes they would have made a near 15% return—just a few percentage points shy of the S&P 500’s gains for all of 2025.
Social media chatter reflected the momentum and novelty of the theme. One X user wrote, “Pinging Allbirds, can't wait for my shoes to suggest better walking strategies.” On Reddit’s wallstreetbets forum, participants exchanged jokes such as “Breaking: Iran rebrands as AI-ran” and “AI BUBBLE'S BACK ON THE MENU BOYS.”
There are signs the initial surge may be losing steam. Vanda Research’s Viraj Patel, in emailed comments, said retail investors took profits on Allbirds “yesterday,” while he reported “strong buying” elsewhere, including shares of Netflix and Tesla.
Goldman Sachs Research’s Dominic Wilson said in a recent episode of the firm’s Exchanges podcast that markets often move from heavy worry toward an early relief phase once the worst “tails” are removed. He added that a recovery period with unresolved issues is not unusual, citing prior examples such as the Covid pandemic and then tariffs, when markets recovered before the crisis had fully passed.
Liz Ann Sonders, chief investment strategist at the Schwab Center for Financial Research, argued that the Allbirds story resembles earlier market patterns: a struggling consumer brand with a recognizable name using a public shell to access a hot thematic narrative. In her view, the business details matter less than the association—comparing the current focus on “GPU infrastructure” to past eras such as internet commerce.
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