U.S., UK Heading Into "Very Dark Times," Ray Dalio Warns

Billionaire investor Ray Dalio has issued a stark warning about the futures of the United States and the United Kingdom, saying both are on the brink of “very, very dark times.”

Dalio’s framework rests on five forces shaping history: money and debt, internal conflict, geopolitical conflict, acts of nature, and human inventiveness.

Drawing on his study of 500 years of history, the Bridgewater Associates founder cited an 80-year cycle suggesting a new era of global and domestic turmoil, Nick Lichtenberg reported for Fortune.

Dalio’s framework rests on five forces shaping history: money and debt, internal conflict, geopolitical conflict, acts of nature, and human inventiveness. He said both nations show symptoms of the cycle entering a dangerous phase.

“The UK has a financial problem, the government has a debt problem,” Dalio said on the Diary of a CEO podcast, explaining that when debt grows faster than income, economies seize up. He linked this to widening wealth gaps and rising left–right polarization, eroding trust in institutions.

Dalio added that Britain lacks the inventive culture and robust capital markets that support the US. But he was equally downbeat about America.

While its entrepreneurial spirit remains strong, he pointed to soaring debt, deep political polarization, and a democratic system under strain.

The US is also locked in what he called a “great power conflict” with China, centered on a technology war that will determine the global order. “The winner of the technology war is going to win all wars,” he warned, likening the contest to the nuclear arms race.