December 9, 2024· 50 min

How the Hedge Fund Magnetar Is Financing the AI Boom

Orality
Model
80%
Oral-dominant (speeches, podcasts, storytelling)

Speaker Breakdown

HostJoe Weisenthal(1,280 words)
M:94%
HostTracy Alloway(1,920 words)
M:28%
GuestJim Prusko(4,904 words)
M:27%

Oral Indicators

Agonistic44%
totally, obviously, very
Engagement63%
you, our, your
Memory Aids100%
listen, so, right
Repetition100%
like (74x), about (59x), know (58x)
Parallelism100%
And I'm Joe Weisenthal...., And the interesting thing is w..., So, you know, we have AI funds...
Sound Patterns63%
57 question(s), alliteration: "markets move", alliteration: "barclays brief"
Formulaic Phrases7%
you know what, i mean, so to speak

Literate Indicators

Hedging8%
suggest, could, perhaps
Passive Voice7%
are filled, are deployed, is based
Abstract Nouns15%
investment, equity, question
Subordination8%
while, because, since
Sentence Length46%
Avg: 16.5 words/sentence
Word Complexity49%
investment, analyze, anticipate
Academic Markers0%
Impersonal Style37%
568 personal pronouns found
Descriptive Style82%
internationally, apply, really

Description

AI software and the hardware that enables it have been hugely popular investments this year. But there have still been limiting factors on the sector, including a shortage of compute to power so many new start-ups. Investors don't want to finance companies that lack a signed contract for compute, and compute providers don't want to sign contracts for startups that haven't already secured funding. Now Magnetar, a hedge fund which started its first ever venture capital fund earlier this year, is trying to solve this "chicken and egg" problem by offering compute in exchange for equity. Magnetar was an early investor in the AI space, partnering with Coreweave and recently helping the hyperscaler to raise $7.5 billion. On this episode, we speak with Jim Prusko, partner and senior portfolio manager on Magnetar's alternative credit and fixed income team, about why the hedge fund is getting into venture capital and some of the new ways they're deploying money in the space. Read More: Magnetar Starts First-Ever Venture Fund, Targets Generative AI Become a Bloomberg.com subscriber using our special intro offer at bloomberg.com/podcastoffer. You’ll get episodes of this podcast ad-free and exclusive access to our daily Odd Lots newsletter. Already a subscriber? Connect your account on the Bloomberg channel page in Apple Podcasts to listen ad-free. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.