Porter & Co.'s 'Trump's Silicon Dollar' — The Six Chokepoint Stocks We Found

The Hook

Porter Stansberry’s latest VSL sells “The Silicon Dollar Playbook”, five “chokepoint” stocks plus a bonus “AI Foundation” pick, for $199 (no subscription required, though the full Complete Investor runs $1,425/year). The framing: the petrodollar is dying, and Trump is engineering a replacement, the “silicon dollar”, where control over AI’s physical inputs (chips, energy, minerals) replaces oil as the basis of dollar demand.

The opening is pure Porter: “President Trump is replacing the U.S. Dollar, built on a pact that most Americans have never heard of, backed by a coalition of some of the most powerful nations on Earth. And bypassing every legal and political channel under the guise of national security.”

It’s a big idea, elegantly constructed. The petrodollar is real macro history. The pivot to AI resource control is a plausible extension. And then, as always with Porter, the stocks arrive.

This is the same Stansberry family of publishers that brought us the “End of Dollar” reboot last month, different presenter, different picks, same macro anxiety as the sales hook.

The Big Claim

The thesis has two layers:

Layer 1 (Macro): The 52-year petrodollar arrangement, where nations must buy dollars to buy oil, is unraveling. Saudi Arabia is diversifying to China, BRICS nations are de-dollarizing, and more oil is being traded in yuan. Trump’s response: create a “silicon dollar” where any nation that wants to participate in the AI economy must transact through American-controlled resources.

Layer 2 (Investment): “Within the AI matrix there are very few choke points, just a relative handful of companies where huge waves of capital have no choice but to flow through.” The five chokepoints: power delivery (VICR), mineral royalties (VMET), natural gas (EQT), Permian royalties (VNOM), and water infrastructure (WBI). The bonus sixth pick: America’s largest cement/aggregates company (AMRZ).

Porter’s framing: “The silicon dollar will not greatly reward companies that just use AI, it will reward the companies AI cannot exist without.”

The Mechanism

Let’s go through each chokepoint.

Chokepoint #1: Vicor (VICR): Power Delivery

This is the most genuinely interesting pick in the promo. Vicor makes the power delivery systems inside AI server racks, the technology that converts raw electricity into the ultra-high-current, low-voltage power that NVIDIA GPUs run on. According to Porter, Vicor patented a proprietary architecture that is “the only commercially proven solution to the power density problem now choking the AI build-out.”

The numbers back some of this up: $300M+ backlog (up 70% in a single quarter), 34% revenue growth forecast, 100% US manufacturing (tariff-protected from China), and ITC patent victories that have driven royalty revenue. Vicor settled an International Trade Commission case where “multiple electronics giants were infringing on its patents”, licensing revenue followed.

The catch: VICR is down ~32% from its tease price. It got hammered in a five-day span where it lost 30%. At the tease price, it was trading at ~85X 2027 earnings. The multiple was aggressive even before the selloff. The technology moat is real, but growth stocks at 85X earnings don’t need bad news to fall; they need the growth to decelerate by a single percentage point.

StockGumshoe’s Travis Johnson bought shares, notable, since he typically doesn’t own what he covers. He sees the patent moat, the US manufacturing edge, and the licensing inflection as underappreciated. I agree the case is stronger than the stock price suggests, but “double or triple from here” (Porter’s claim) requires revenue growth to accelerate, not just continue.

Chokepoint #2: Versamet Royalties (VMET): Mineral Royalties

This is the royalty pitch Porter has been making for 20 years: “You don’t want to own the mine. You don’t want to employ the workers… You simply want to own a legal right to a percentage of every single thing that comes out of the ground, forever.”

Versamet is a four-year-old royalty company, essentially a mini Franco-Nevada, that went from $12M in revenue in 2024 to a projected $100M this year, with a path to $300M by 2028. It’s 79% gold-levered, so this is really a gold royalty play dressed up as an AI chokepoint play.

The “Franco-Nevada at age 4” framing works on paper: Franco-Nevada compounds royalty revenue over decades, and Versamet is at the start of that curve. But almost 80% gold exposure means this stock trades on gold prices, not on AI infrastructure demand. Gold is soft, and VMET is down ~28% from its tease price as a result.

Chokepoint #3: EQT (EQT): Natural Gas

Porter has been pitching EQT as “Gods of Gas” since he founded Porter & Co. roughly four years ago. The thesis hasn’t changed: EQT is the largest US natural gas producer (~6% of all US gas), it’s the lowest-cost producer in America, and the Mountain Valley Pipeline connects it directly to Data Center Alley in Virginia.

The January 2026 free cash flow number ($1 billion in a single month) is eye-popping, but it was a one-off: a cold snap plus an unhedged position created a windfall that won’t repeat. At ~12X forward earnings with cash flow per share potentially above $9, EQT is the cheapest stock in the promo, and it’s essentially flat over 18 months, suggesting the market doesn’t believe the natural gas thesis either.

Chokepoint #4: Viper Energy (VNOM): Permian Royalties

This is the royalty model applied to energy: 87,000+ net royalty acres in the Permian Basin, 90% of cash flow returned to shareholders, no drilling costs, no operational risk. The ~5.9% dividend yield ($0.68/quarter, including a variable component) is the attraction.

But the variable dividend isn’t guaranteed, it depends on well completions and oil prices. The base dividend ($0.38/quarter, ~3.3% yield) is sustainable above $30/barrel, but if oil dips, the variable component disappears. This is a yield play at its core, not an AI chokepoint.

Chokepoint #5: WaterBridge Infrastructure (WBI): Water

This is Porter’s most creative chokepoint: produced water (wastewater from fracking) in the Permian Basin is a genuine bottleneck. If you can’t dispose of the water, you can’t pump the oil. WaterBridge built the largest produced water pipeline network in America, and its market share in the Delaware Basin jumped from 5% to 39% in a single year after the regulator shut down competing disposal operations.

The 50% EBITDA margins are real. The $4B market cap is hard to value, 4X forward revenue, 40X forward earnings, 8-9X EV/EBITDA. It’s the only stock in the promo that’s UP since the tease (+12%), which says something about the market recognizing the monopoly dynamic.

Bonus: Amrize (AMRZ): “The AI Foundation”

This might be the most genuinely interesting pick of the bunch. Amrize is the Holcim spin-off, the largest cement and aggregates business in the US. The CEO put $50M+ of his own money into open-market purchases, which is genuinely notable. Trading at 17-20X forward earnings vs. competitors MLM/VMC at 27X, there’s a real valuation gap.

But the gap exists for a reason: Amrize has a roofing/building envelope business that drags on the multiple. And “cement for AI data centers” is a real but modest demand driver, data centers are big concrete projects, but they’re a rounding error in total US cement consumption. The thesis is really about the CEO’s conviction and the spin-off unlocking value, not about AI.

The Real Pick

Six stocks, six tickers. Here’s what we identified and where they trade:

All six tickers verified active via Polygon (Aug 4, 2026 close). The performance column tells you what the “silicon dollar” urgency has actually delivered since the June 4 tease date: roughly flat on an equal-weighted basis, with two big losers (VICR, VMET) offsetting one modest winner (WBI).

The mechanism section above breaks down each chokepoint in detail. The short version: VICR has the strongest IP moat, WBI has the strongest market position, AMRZ has the most compelling insider signal, and the other three are re-recommendations from prior Porter promos dressed up in new “silicon dollar” clothing.

Does the Math Check Out?

The macro thesis has real legs: the petrodollar is fading. Saudi Arabia is pricing some oil in yuan.

But “Trump’s silicon dollar” is a narrative, not a policy. There is no “silicon dollar accord.” There is no legislation creating AI resource-backed dollar demand. The executive orders Porter cites, reopening coal plants, green-lighting offshore drilling, taking equity stakes in mining companies, are about energy and mineral security, not about creating a new monetary system.

More importantly, five of the six picks are re-recommendations, not new ideas:

• EQT: Pitched for 4 years as “Gods of Gas”
• VNOM: Long-time holding for both Porter and Travis Johnson
• VMET: First soft-teased in April 2026
• AMRZ: First pitched January 2026
• WBI: Appears in several Porter promos
• VICR: The only genuinely new addition (first teased ~2 weeks before this promo)

The $199 for two special reports is a loss leader. Porter & Co. counts on upgrades to the $1,425/year subscription. If the picks flop, the reports were already written from existing newsletter content.

Performance Reality Check

In aggregate, the six picks are underwater since the tease, roughly flat on an equal-weighted basis, with two big losers (VICR, VMET) offsetting one modest winner (WBI). That doesn’t mean they’re bad investments, but it does mean the “silicon dollar” urgency hasn’t been rewarded yet.

What They Got Right

1. The petrodollar erosion is real. Porter’s macro framework is well-sourced and the trend is undeniable.
2. Resource scarcity is an underappreciated AI bottleneck. The picks-and-shovels framework (power, minerals, gas, water, royalties) is a creative angle that most AI investing narratives miss.
3. VICR’s patent moat is genuinely valuable. Power delivery at scale is a harder problem than most investors realize. The ITC wins and licensing revenue support the thesis.
4. AMRZ insider buying is noteworthy. When a CEO puts $50M of personal capital into open-market purchases, it’s a signal worth paying attention to, not because CEOs are always right, but because they’re rarely this wrong with this much skin in the game.
5. The WBI monopoly is real. Regulatory capture, having the competition shut down by the regulator, is about as strong a moat as you can find in energy infrastructure.

What They Got Wrong

1. “New Silicon Dollar” is a narrative, not a policy. Porter is connecting dots that may or may not form a picture. The Trump administration’s energy and mineral policies are real; the “silicon dollar” replacing the petrodollar is speculative.
2. Most picks are recycled. Five of six stocks were already in Porter’s universe. The “secret” framing sells the illusion of new discovery.
3. Gold royalty ≠ AI chokepoint. Versamet at 79% gold exposure trades on the gold price, not on AI demand. Calling it a “silicon dollar” chokepoint is thematic overreach.
4. The “Gods of Gas” thesis is 4 years old and still flat. EQT at 12X forward earnings is cheap, but “cheap for a reason” is a real risk, if natural gas prices stay suppressed, the earnings won’t materialize.
5. $199 vs. $1,425. The special reports are a gateway drug. If you buy the silicon dollar thesis, you’ll soon face a decision: renew at full price or walk away from the “chokepoints” you were told would 5-8X.

The Verdict

Porter is genuinely good at macro storytelling. The petrodollar-to-silicon-dollar narrative is well-argued, and the chokepoint framework is a creative way to frame AI infrastructure investing. But the stocks themselves are a mixed bag:

• Best ideas: VICR (genuine IP moat, licensing inflection), AMRZ (CEO conviction, valuation gap), WBI (monopoly position)
• Most overhyped relative to thesis: VMET (it’s a gold stock), EQT (4 years of “Gods of Gas” with flat returns)
• Yield play, not AI play: VNOM (decent dividend, but don’t buy it for AI exposure)

The irony: the best “silicon dollar” thesis, AI infrastructure requires physical inputs that America controls, is genuinely interesting. It just doesn’t require calling it a “new dollar,” and it doesn’t require buying six stocks today that were pitched months ago under different names.

This is not financial advice. NewsletterVetter has no position in any stock mentioned. Porter & Co.’s own disclaimer notes that the advertised returns may not be representative of all subscriber outcomes, and that past performance of the “royalty model” does not guarantee future results. StockGumshoe’s Travis Johnson disclosed positions in VICR, VMET, VNOM, WBI, and AMRZ at the time of his analysis.