Technology

Story: Situational Awareness Hedge Fund Nears Collapse After AI Stocks Crater 30%

By Julie Binoche

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Leverage, Anthropic, and a $13.7 Billion Filing. The fund's most recent SEC filing, dated March 31, 2026, listed 42 positions valued at $13.

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A Career Defined by High-Stakes Collapses. Aschenbrenner's background makes this story harder to ignore.

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Leopold Aschenbrenner's $20 billion AI fund is basically falling apart. Situational Awareness, the hedge fund he launched in 2024, is now facing forced liquidations, margin…

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The collapse came fast. The fund had grown by 1,000% since its inception, and as recently as June 2026 it was still up 439% net of fees for the year.

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Ken Griffin's Citadel reportedly stepped in and acquired the majority of Situational Awareness's stock portfolio.

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There's also the SK Hynix angle. Situational Awareness held a stake tied to SK Hynix's US listing through American Depositary Receipts.

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An upcoming SEC filing expected in mid-August will cover the fund's July positions. That filing is probably going to be ugly.

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Meanwhile, Aschenbrenner is reportedly seeking additional funding to stabilize things. Cash injections for margin calls are already in motion.

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See also: Trade.xyz Covers Liquidation Losses After SK Hynix Perpetual Drops 19% on Hyperliquid

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Aschenbrenner's background makes this story harder to ignore. He worked on FTX's Future Fund, an effective altruism initiative backed by Sam Bankman-Fried.

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After FTX, he landed at OpenAI. That didn't last either. He was dismissed following a data leak incident.

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And the bet worked — for a while. The fund reached a peak valuation of $20 billion, driven largely by sky-high AI stock valuations.

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What makes this particularly striking is the personal dimension. Aschenbrenner reportedly put nearly all of his personal net worth into Situational Awareness.

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See also: Gumi and SBI Launch ¥3 Billion Crypto Fund Targeting Bitcoin and Major Altcoins

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High leverage, concentrated positions, a single-theme bet on AI stocks — it's a strategy that can make you look like a genius and then destroy you inside of a month.

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