Editor's note: After nearly 60 years leading Berkshire Hathaway, Warren Buffett is planning to step down. It's a reminder that today's market looks nothing like the one Buffett mastered... And Marc Chaikin, founder of our corporate affiliate Chaikin Analytics, says investors need new tools to navigate it. In this piece – adapted from the free Chaikin PowerFeed daily e-letter – Marc discusses the opportunities (and traps) in today's evolving, AI-fueled market.

The legendary Warren Buffett just made a big decision...

During Berkshire Hathaway's (BRK-B) annual meeting last month, the 94-year-old "Oracle of Omaha" announced he'll be retiring as CEO at the end of this year. And he wants Greg Abel – Berkshire's vice chairman of noninsurance operations – to take his place.

This announcement shocked the world... including Abel himself, who didn't know about Buffett's decision to retire beforehand.

Buffett took control of Berkshire all the way back in 1965. His name is synonymous with his company.

And heading Berkshire has consistently placed Buffett among the wealthiest people in the world. (Today, he ranks fifth.)

Despite that incredible wealth, Buffett is a man of modesty...

He lives in the same house he bought for $31,500 back in 1958.

Adjusted for inflation, that house would currently be worth a bit more than $350,000. Today, the average sales price for an American home is nearly $504,000.

Buffett also drives a 2014 Cadillac XTS... which his daughter picked out for him. A Cadillac is nice, but it's no Rolls-Royce.

Put simply, Buffett is more than the world's most successful value investor. He's the living embodiment of value itself.

This begs the question that plenty of investors have been asking... What is Berkshire Hathaway without Warren Buffett?

The market is asking the same question, too...

What Worked for Buffett Won't Work in the AI Age

Buffett made his retirement announcement on Saturday, May 3. The next trading day, Berkshire's stock fell 5%.

Overall, BRK-B shares are down about 10% since Buffett's announcement. Meanwhile, the S&P 500 Index is up roughly 5% over the same span.

That's a big disconnect.

But it makes sense. Today, we're in the midst of a major change...

You see, it's actually easy for companies to "fudge" their earnings... and make things seem rosier than they really are.

They do it using completely legal means – accounting tricks.

Buffett had a talent for seeing these tricks. And it made him one of the richest men in the world.

But now, he's retiring. And as you probably know, his longtime investing partner Charlie Munger died in 2023.

This creates a major problem for most people.

We're in a new type of market... driven by companies whose business models didn't exist in the 20th century.

With the rise of AI and next-gen technology, we haven't seen businesses with such incredible combinations of scalability, return on invested capital, market reach, network effects, and customer addiction.

It means that we're in a breakthrough era. It's one where the market is delivering the next batch of big winners.

I'm not just talking about the big-name tech stocks. Nearly every company on Earth is working on getting this breakthrough into its business model.

Some of them will succeed. They'll find new efficiencies. And the market will reward them generously.

But there's a downside, too...

Breakthrough sectors are full of "trapdoors." Bad stocks that should be trading near zero are flying high alongside real winners. And when they crash, they'll crush investors.

Now more than ever, you need tools to help you spot the real winners... and sidestep the fakers.

Buffett has a real talent for this. With him stepping down as Berkshire's CEO after so many years, it feels like another sign of an evolving market.

And folks are going to need tools specifically designed for this environment.

At Chaikin Analytics, we use the Power Gauge. It gathers investment fundamentals and technicals into a simple rating of "very bullish" to "very bearish." It's a simple way to look "under the hood" with every tool at our disposal... to find strong stocks in strong industries.

We'll use it to find the winners as the market shifts... and avoid the traps.

Good investing,

Marc Chaikin

Editor's note: AI's underlying technology doubles in power every six months. So it's no wonder 200 tech stocks doubled over the past year... most of them related to AI. That's why Marc is unveiling his biggest breakthrough ever. It's a new way to see which of these tech leaders could be the next to double, before you invest. So mark your calendar... He'll unveil the full opportunity on Wednesday, June 25 at 10 a.m. Eastern time.