Traders think Leopold Aschenbrenner just bet $96M on AI options
AI researcher and investor Leopold Aschenbrenner is suspected of being behind the purchase of $96 million worth of SanDisk, Micron, Intel, and Marvell call options. Aschenbrenner runs hedge fund Situational Awareness, most famous for losing billions of dollars during a sudden downturn in AI stock prices. It was a wipeout the Financial Times ranked as the largest in hedge fund history. JPMorgan Chase subsequently terminated its lending relationship with the fund. Although SEC filings haven’t yet disclosed the name of the buyer, Jim Cramer posted today, “If I didn’t know any better I would say Leopold is back!” ZeroHedge agreed. Options provide financial leverage by design, and their short time to maturity makes these contracts even more volatile. All these options expire on October 2. Situational Awareness previously ran on leverage as high as 400%, growing from $225 million at launch in 2024 and soaring past $45 billion in July before liquidating as...