D.E. Shaw is adapting its strategy to counter intensifying competition for talent and rising technology costs by moving some of its best investment ideas to an employee-only fund and tightening client terms. With record assets of about $125 billion, strong recent returns, and a collective leadership structure, the firm is also expanding into human-trader-led strategies while maintaining a strict focus on long-term risk management.

Elliott Investment Management (led by Paul Singer and Jonathan Pollock) warned that debt-fueled risk-taking, AI hype, budget deficits, inflation, private credit, and speculative trading indicate a substantial bear market may be ahead, comparing the climate to the 1920s boom preceding the Great Depression. The $80 billion firm reported flat third-quarter returns and under 2% gains for the first nine months of 2026, trailing the S&P 500, T-bills, and the hedge-fund composite index. The firm is positioned defensively, prioritizing capital preservation to deploy during turmoil, and sees opportunities in healthcare activism, producing energy properties, and dislocated credit markets.