Leopold Aschenbrenner, a former OpenAI researcher whose influential AI manifesto drew wide attention in Silicon Valley, is now making waves on Wall Street. Shares of Nebius Group surged Thursday after his San Francisco-based hedge fund, Situational Awareness, disclosed a major stake in the Dutch cloud computing provider—a move that offers fresh insight into how leading AI thinkers are positioning for the sector’s future.
Aschenbrenner, who is in his 20s, launched Situational Awareness despite lacking prior professional money management experience. The fund, characterized as an AI-focused “brain trust,” had approximately $4 billion in reported investments as of March. It has received backing from prominent tech and investment figures, including Stripe co-founders Patrick and John Collison, as well as Daniel Gross and Nat Friedman—both recently enlisted by Mark Zuckerberg for Meta’s AI initiatives.
Situational Awareness targets publicly traded companies poised to benefit from AI adoption, with investments spanning semiconductors, infrastructure, and power firms, alongside venture stakes in companies like Anthropic. The strategy also includes smaller short positions against sectors vulnerable to AI disruption.
According to a regulatory filing, Situational Awareness holds 12.4 million Class A shares of Nebius, representing a 5.6% stake and making it the fund’s largest equity holding. Other significant positions include CoreWeave and Bloom Energy—companies aligned with the infrastructure demands of advanced AI models.
However, the fund is actively hedging against potential overheating in the AI trade, with disclosed put-option positions against Nvidia, Broadcom, Advanced Micro Devices, and Oracle, as well as a bearish bet against the VanEck Semiconductor ETF.
It’s worth noting that the 13F filing reflects holdings only as of the end of March. Given the volatile nature of AI-related stocks in recent months, Aschenbrenner may have already adjusted or exited some of these positions since the disclosure.