Ex-Sequoia Equity Chief Jeff Wang Prepares $2B+ Hedge Fund Launch

Jeff Wang, who spent more than a decade running Sequoia Capital's global equities unit, is preparing to launch one of 2025's largest new hedge funds. His firm, Augnition Global Investors, is set to begin trading in October with over $2 billion in assets under management — a figure that already blows past the $1 billion floor that conference attendees were predicting earlier this year.

Wang grew Sequoia's public equities business from $600 million to more than $9 billion during his tenure, generating roughly 17% annualized returns in the process. His number two at Augnition is Alan Lo, formerly of SRS Investment Management. Both men are reportedly committing meaningful portions of their personal wealth to the new venture — a signal of conviction that allocators tend to find reassuring. The Menlo Park-based firm has assembled a team of at least five people, drawing talent from Ziff Brothers spin-off Crescent Park Management and Kodai Capital.

Augnition's strategy spans both public and private markets, putting it in the broader crossover-fund category that has gained traction among tech-savvy investors bridging venture-style access with public-market discipline. The launch generated significant buzz at Morgan Stanley's Breakers conference earlier this year, one of the hedge fund industry's most closely watched annual gatherings.

The macro backdrop is working in Wang's favor. A recent Goldman Sachs survey found that 30% of hedge fund allocators plan to increase their exposure to long-short equity funds in the second half of the year — the highest share of any hedge fund category. Meanwhile, the infrastructure for launching new managers has improved considerably, with multi-strategy giants like Millennium increasingly seeding outside talent. Hedge Fund Research counted more than 160 fund launches in Q1 alone, the busiest single quarter since 2022.