「AI Stock God」 Fund's Margin Call Saga: All-Night Negotiations During Wedding to Sell Anthropic Equity for Funding, Ultimately Opting to Liquidate Public Stock

August 1st: Prominent financial media Wall St Engine exposed the behind-the-scenes details of the "AI Stock God" Leopold Aschenbrenner's liquidation:

After the market rapidly cooled down in mid-July, Situational Awareness's holding stock prices triggered daily monitoring by banks such as Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley, leading to margin calls. It is reported that during this period, other hedge funds, upon learning of this, shorted their positions, creating a feedback loop of "price drop → margin call → forced liquidation → further pressure on stock prices." Leopold Aschenbrenner later likened this to a bank run.

By late July, while Leopold Aschenbrenner was hosting a multi-day wedding in Carmel, he and his team negotiated through the night to maintain the fund's operation. On the night of July 29th, Leopold reached a preliminary agreement with investors to sell about $3.5 billion of Anthropic equity to a consortium led by Greenoaks and Sequoia ("Redwood").

However, from the early morning of July 30th until the market open, Leopold Aschenbrenner changed his decision, opting to retain the private portfolio and instead sell public stocks. Citadel and Millennium subsequently negotiated with the fund's team until after midnight. Citadel ultimately reached an agreement before Thursday's opening, purchasing most of the fund's public equity investment portfolio at a discount of over 10% below the then-market value. This transaction allowed the Situational Awareness fund to meet margin call requirements and avoid formal default. Following the completion of the transaction, related AI and semiconductor stocks rebounded on Thursday, benefiting Citadel.

Around July 31st, 2026: The Situational Awareness fund sent a letter to investors, confirming a net loss of approximately 67% in July but still a net increase of around 80% for the year. Leopold Aschenbrenner stated that he takes full responsibility for this event, the fund has completely removed bank leverage, plans to continue operations and invest in the public market, while adjusting portfolio management and risk teams.