ChainThink reports that on July 31, according to The Wall Street Journal, citing sources familiar with the matter, the fund Situational Awareness, founded by former OpenAI researcher Leopold Aschenbrenner, suffered significant losses during the July AI stock correction, with its net asset value declining by approximately 67% for the month.
Reports indicate that the fund previously held heavy positions in AI-related stocks, and after significant losses in these holdings, it was forced to sell most of its stock positions to raise cash and meet margin calls from lenders.
A significant portion of the positions was taken over by Citadel, led by Ken Griffin. In his letter to investors, Aschenbrenner stated, “This month, we let you down.”
He attributed part of the losses to short sellers exacerbating the sell-off and said the fund faced pressure similar to a "bank run." Since its founding about two years ago, Situational Awareness once managed assets exceeding $20 billion.
As of the end of May, the fund's returns for the year reached as high as 270%; after a decline in July, it still rose approximately 80% for the year. The report noted that the fund continues to hold investments in private AI companies, including Anthropic.