AI Controversies: Deception and a Power Couple's Union

WHO:

Fortune - Leopold Aschenbrenner, groom; Avital Balwit, chief of staff to Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei; Patrick and John Collison, founders of Stripe; Ken Griffin, Citadel CEO.

WHAT:

Fortune - Leopold Aschenbrenner is getting married this weekend.

Fortune - Aschenbrenner's hedge fund, Situational Awareness, was built to $45 billion in capital.

Fortune - Aschenbrenner's fund was down 67% on the month but still up 80% on the year.

Fortune - Aschenbrenner compared the situation to a bank run, stating, “vulnerability begetting more vulnerability.”

Fortune - Ken Griffin bought the bulk of Aschenbrenner's public portfolio at more than 10% below market value.

Fortune - Aschenbrenner offered one-on-one phone calls to investors during his honeymoon.

WHERE:

Fortune - The wedding is taking place in Carmel, California.

Fortune - The ceremony is at a Tuscan-style villa and the honeymoon is at a forest spa retreat.

WHEN:

Fortune - The wedding is happening this weekend.

Fortune - Aschenbrenner's engagement was first reported in October.

WHY:

Fortune - Aschenbrenner's hedge fund faced pressure due to a black swan event affecting memory stocks and Big Tech names, leading to significant losses.

HOW:

Fortune - Aschenbrenner was leveraged three to four times on his bets, borrowing three to four dollars for every dollar of capital.

Fortune - Aschenbrenner attempted to sell stock to meet collateral demands from banks, which further pushed prices down.

(UPDATED August 1, 2026 01:29 UTC)

Leopold Aschenbrenner is set to marry this weekend in Carmel, California, at a beautiful Tuscan-style villa, with his honeymoon planned at a forest spa retreat. His hedge fund, Situational Awareness, recently faced significant challenges, dropping 67% in the month due to a black swan event affecting memory stocks and Big Tech, despite being up 80% for the year. In a unique move, Aschenbrenner is offering one-on-one phone calls to investors during his honeymoon, as he navigates the aftermath of his fund's recent turmoil, which included Ken Griffin purchasing a large portion of his public portfolio at a discount.