Top hedge funds are eyeing the "AI hot trend"! Rumor has it that Point72 is planning to raise funds for a major investment in AI

According to a source familiar with the matter, the famous Wall Street financial tycoon and billionaire investor Steve Cohen, under his hedge fund Point72, plans to launch a separate hedge fund focused on artificial intelligence to capitalize on this trend. The new long-short stock fund is expected to be launched later this year or early 2025, with a focus on artificial intelligence and AI-related hardware.

The source added that the company aims to raise $1 billion, with contributions expected from Cohen himself and Point72 employees. This independent public fundraising is separate from the main fund due to the need for a more flexible net exposure. Cohen has recently shown a long-term bullish attitude towards artificial intelligence, comparing its rise to the technological developments of the 1990s and calling it an investment "truly enduring theme."

The founder of Point72 stated in an interview in April, "I don't think this is a bubble. I believe the market underestimates some of the benefits we believe artificial intelligence will bring to businesses."

Since last year, the significant rise in stocks related to artificial intelligence such as NVIDIA (NVDA.US) has pushed the overall market to record highs this year. With increasing enthusiasm for artificial intelligence, the market capitalization of this chip manufacturing giant has surpassed $3 trillion, and any stocks related to AI have experienced substantial gains. On Tuesday, NVIDIA's stock price continued to reach new highs, hitting $136.33. Its market cap exceeded $3.33 trillion, surpassing Microsoft (MSFT.US) to become the world's most valuable listed company.

Cohen emphasized the role of artificial intelligence in improving productivity for almost every company. He stated that his investment firm has saved $25 million by using large language models like ChatGPT to enhance efficiency.

Prominent Point72

Founded in 2014, Point72 Asset Management, formerly known as SAC Capital Advisors, which was dubbed the "craziest money-making machine on Wall Street," rose to fame in the late 1990s and around 2000. As of April this year, Point72 manages nearly $34 billion in assets.

Point72 focuses on diversified investment strategies, with strategy teams including long-short equity strategies, systematic investment strategies, global macro hedge strategies, and institutional private investments.

The founder of Point72 is Steve Cohen, and the character Bobby Axelrod in the hit TV series "Billions" is modeled after Cohen. Compared to the visionary and ruthless nature of the male lead in "Billions," Cohen's experiences with Wall Street hedge funds, the FBI, SEC, and federal courts are all real battles he has gone through On October 19, 1987, the U.S. stock market experienced a Black Swan event, with a single-day plunge of over 22%. Amidst the wailing on Wall Street, Cohen used all available funds to go long. On October 20, 1987, the U.S. stock market rebounded significantly, and among all the traders in Cohen's company, only Cohen achieved substantial profits, offsetting the company's losses.

In 1992, Cohen left his company and founded his own firm using his initials as the name, which later became the globally renowned SAC. From then on, Cohen's life was like a cheat code, unstoppable. In 1998 and 1999, SAC achieved approximately a 70% return rate for two consecutive years, shocking Wall Street peers. At this point, Cohen was already hailed as the "King of Wall Street," truly becoming a financial titan on Wall Street.

In 2000, the dot-com bubble burst, but Cohen had already started shorting the stock market before the crisis hit. When the crisis erupted, he engaged in frantic short selling, resulting in a 73% profit in 2000, a battle that truly sealed his legendary status.

Despite the rapid growth of the company thereafter, over the past decade, Cohen engaged in a "tug of war" with the SEC, FBI, and U.S. judicial agencies over insider trading. Regulatory bodies began investigating whether Cohen was involved in insider trading. In 2013, the U.S. federal court filed a lawsuit against SAC for alleged insider trading. SAC eventually pleaded guilty and paid an $1.8 billion fine. However, Cohen himself did not face any criminal charges but was prohibited from engaging in company investment activities for 5 years. In March 2014, SAC was renamed Point72 Asset Management. In 2018, Cohen was officially unbarred, and since then, he has transformed Point72 into a hedge fund