Situational Awareness takes 5.6% stake in Nebius amid AI infrastructure push
The move complements existing positions in Iren and CoreWeave as the former OpenAI researcher bets on dedicated GPU hardware over hyperscaler bundles.
Leopold Aschenbrenner’s hedge fund, Situational Awareness, has acquired a 5.6% stake in Nebius Group, according to a filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 12.4 million shares of the neocloud provider, a move that aligns with Aschenbrenner’s broader thesis on artificial intelligence infrastructure. Aschenbrenner, a former OpenAI researcher, manages approximately $13.7 billion in assets under management.
The investment completes what the fund describes as a pure-play neocloud portfolio, adding to existing positions in competitors Iren and CoreWeave. Nebius specialises in leasing GPU hardware for AI workloads, such as model training and inference, rather than offering the bundled services typical of hyperscalers like Amazon Web Services, Microsoft Azure, or Google Cloud Platform.
Nebius reported first-quarter revenue of $399 million, representing a 684% year-on-year increase. Management projects the company is on track to achieve annualised run rate revenue between $7 billion and $9 billion by the end of the year. At a current market capitalisation of $58 billion, this guidance implies a forward price-to-sales multiple of roughly 6.4 at the high end of the projection.
The neocloud model is gaining traction as hyperscalers struggle to meet the surging demand for GPU capacity. Some major technology firms are increasingly outsourcing capacity to specialised providers rather than competing directly. Iren, a former Bitcoin miner, recently secured a $9.7 billion capacity deal with Microsoft and $5.5 billion in agreements with Nvidia. CoreWeave, meanwhile, reports a backlog exceeding $99 billion and serves clients including OpenAI, Anthropic, and Meta Platforms.
Nebius shares have risen by more than 176% in 2026, suggesting the market has already priced in significant growth expectations. While the company’s contracted, multiyear agreements with large AI hyperscalers support its valuation, the steep price appreciation leaves little room for execution error. Investors are effectively paying a premium for a story that is widely recognised, with the risk that current momentum may be overextended.
