Hedge fund Value Aligned Research Advisors (VARA) suffered a heavy blow last month, plunging 33% in a single month due to its all-in bet on AI themes — mainly driven by a revaluation of AI stocks. People familiar with the matter said VARA's portfolio resembles Leopold Aschenbrenner's Situational Awareness fund. The firm told Class C shareholders that despite the sharp drop, the fund is still up 13% year to date. July was even worse, with a decline of as much as 44%.