AI is showing up in hiring, recruiting, performance management, and employee monitoring. While these tools promise efficiency, they can also create significant legal risk if they result in discriminatory outcomes. In this episode of California Employment News, Weintraub Tobin attorneys Jackie Simonovich and Lukas Clary discuss how employer use of AI can implicate Title VII, the ADA, and FEHA, and review key new California AI laws and deadlines.
In this episode, they cover:
How AI tools can create disparate impact based on race, gender, age, or disability
Why employers remain responsible for third party AI vendors
New FEHA regulations effective October 1, 2025 governing automated decision systems
New California AI laws, including AB 2013, SB 53, and SB 942/AB 853
Listen for a clear breakdown of what California employers need to know to stay compliant as AI regulation continues to evolve.
Let me tell you something the financial media won’t.
Every 45 days, the largest investment funds in the world are legally required to show their hand. It’s called a 13F filing, and it gets about as much mainstream coverage as a city council agenda. Meanwhile, CNBC is debating whether Nvidia is going to $200 or $600, and retail traders are buying options on whatever ticker is trending on Reddit.
I’ll take the 13F.
The smart money files their homework every quarter. All you have to do is read it.
After cross-referencing 40 institutional funds — spanning value, deep value, aggressive growth, and activist strategies — against Q4 2024 filings, four stocks kept showing up in the same sentence.
Brookfield Corp (BN). Alphabet (GOOGL). Restaurant Brands International (QSR). American Express (AXP).
That’s your Tier 1. Mega consensus. Four or more top-tier managers converging on the same names at the same time.
THE GURU OVERLAP WATCHLIST — Q4 2024 / Q1 2025
Tickers
Tier
Key Funds
BN, GOOGL, QSR, AXP
Tier 1 — Mega Consensus
Ackman, Akre, Buffett, Baupost, Tiger Global — 4+ funds each
MA, V, BAC, MCO, KKR
Tier 2 — Strong Overlap
Akre Capital dominant: MA 17.9%, KKR 11.3%, V 10.1%, MCO 10%
UNP, FLR, GPC, CNHI
Tier 3 — Rotation Thesis
Baupost +$354M UNP, Einhorn 9.1% FLR — Great Rotation 2026
GRBK, VRT
Tier 4 — Special Situations
Einhorn 27.5% GRBK (largest position), Vertiv data center
TIER 1: THE MEGA CONSENSUS
Think about what that actually means. Bill Ackman at Pershing Square and Chuck Akre at Akre Capital don’t run into each other at the same idea by accident. Ackman holds BN at 18.5% of his entire portfolio. Akre holds it at 13.1%. These are not casual positions. These are positions that say: I will be wrong about very little else before I am wrong about this. That’s the definition of conviction.
On GOOGL, you have Pershing Square deploying over $2 billion in a new position, Tiger Global holding it as a top-five name, and Baupost — Seth Klarman’s operation, one of the most cautious value shops on the planet — adding shares. When Klarman buys something alongside a growth manager, you pay attention. That’s a consensus that the AI narrative has created a buying opportunity in one of the most profitable businesses ever built.
TIER 2: THE QUIET COMPOUNDERS
Drop down to Tier 2 and it gets more interesting, not less. Mastercard. Visa. Moody’s. KKR. Bank of America. Three of those five are Akre Capital positions at 10% or above of his entire fund.
Mastercard at 17.9% of his fund isn’t a trade. It’s a statement. Same with Moody’s — a credit rating oligopoly that gets paid whether the market goes up or down, in good times and bad, forever. Most retail traders have never owned Moody’s. Akre has been compounding it for years while the options crowd chases the next earnings play.
TIER 3: THE GREAT ROTATION OF 2026
Tier 3 is where my own thesis gets confirmed in real time. Union Pacific. Fluor. Genuine Parts. CNH Industrial. I’ve been calling the Great Rotation of 2026 for months — the institutional shift away from overvalued tech and into industrials, materials, and infrastructure.
Baupost added $354 million to Union Pacific in Q4 2024 alone. Einhorn built a 9.1% position in Fluor, an engineering and construction company that most investors couldn’t name if you spotted them the ticker. Baupost opened a $193 million new position in Genuine Parts. Einhorn started fresh in CNH Industrial, agricultural equipment.
These aren’t glamour stocks. They don’t trend on social media. What they have is valuation discipline, hard assets, and now — institutional capital flowing in before the crowd figures it out.
That’s the edge. That 30-to-60-day gap between when a fund builds a position and when the 13F filing confirms it publicly. Your morning scan at 6:40 AM catches the institutional footprints before the filing reveals the shoe size.
TRANSLATING THIS INTO ACTUAL TRADES
The Protected Collar isn’t glamorous either. You own the stock. You sell a covered call above the current price to generate income. You buy a protective put below to define your maximum loss. You know your worst case before you enter. You collect premium while the Akres and Klarmanns of the world continue building their positions beneath you.
On QSR at $80, a 30-day covered call at $85 might generate $1.50 to $2.00. Add the 3% dividend yield and you’re looking at real cash flow on a stock two major institutional managers are actively accumulating. That’s not speculation. That’s getting paid to be patient.
On UNP, the Baupost accumulation signal means one thing: someone who does more due diligence than any individual investor ever will has concluded the risk/reward favors a large, long-term position. My job is not to do better analysis than Seth Klarman. My job is to show up in the same neighborhood before the crowd arrives, with a strategy that caps my downside while I wait.
TIER 4: CONCENTRATED BETS
Tier 4 gives you Green Brick Partners and Vertiv. Einhorn has 27.5% of his entire fund in GRBK. That is an extraordinary concentration by any standard. It tells you he believes the homebuilder thesis — housing supply shortage, demographic demand — is so compelling that diversification is the wrong move.
Vertiv is your data center infrastructure play. AI doesn’t run on promises. It runs on power, cooling, and hardware. Vertiv builds the infrastructure that keeps the servers running. High volatility, high institutional interest, and a theme that isn’t going away.
THE BOTTOM LINE
Forty funds. Fifteen stocks. Four tiers of institutional conviction. The data is public. The filings are free. The analysis takes discipline, not genius.
Most retail investors will never look at a 13F. They’ll watch the same three financial channels, follow the same five accounts on X, and wonder why their portfolio looks like everyone else’s — mediocre in bull markets, painful in bear ones.
You don’t have to be that investor.
The smart money files their homework every quarter. All you have to do is read it.
Timothy McCandless writes The Hedge, a no-hype financial commentary for serious retail investors. He trades protected collar strategies on dividend-paying equities and believes capital preservation is the prerequisite to compounding. Nothing here is investment advice.
The Hedge · thehedge.com · Brutal honesty over hype
MARKET WAKES UP: Monday’s rally was betting on quick regime change (Khamenei dead = Iran collapses). Tuesday reality: Iran NOT collapsing, threatening Strait of Hormuz closure (20% oil), nuclear retaliation possible. VIX spiked from 17.2 → 22.4. Markets realizing: This is REAL war with REAL consequences, not precision strike. Monday’s 84% GREEN → Tuesday’s 100% RED = Total bet reversal.
SECTION 2: MARKET OVERVIEW – PANIC
SPY: -1.2% $689 (down from $697 Monday)
QQQ: -1.8% $600 (broke below $610 support)
VIX: 22.4 ↑ from 17.2 (fear spiking)
10-Year: 4.18% ↑ from 4.02% (flight to safety BUT inflation fears)
SECTION 3: YOUR SCAN – 100% RED
19 STOCKS: 0 GREEN (0%), 19 RED (100%) = TOTAL COLLAPSE
Consumer Cyclical (2 stocks): DAN -5.37%, FIVE -4.42%
Materials (1 stock): CSTM -5.00%
MONDAY vs TUESDAY: Mon: TTM +8.40%, GLW +4.97%, HYMC +10.66% | Tue: NO stocks in scan, ALL previous leaders dropped out OR red. Semiconductors (SMTC -7.04%, GFS -5.60%) leading decline. Industrials (NVT -7.00%, GE -4.01%) confirming war disruption fears. Even defensive Healthcare (TXG -5.92%) selling. This is PANIC, not correction.
SECTION 4: SECTOR ROTATION – EVERYTHING DOWN
XLK (Technology) -2.1%
YOUR Scan: SMTC -7.04%, GFS -5.60% = Semis getting crushed
XLI (Industrials) -2.5%
YOUR Scan: NVT -7.00%, GE -4.01%, UPS -2.57% = War disruption
XLV (Healthcare) -1.2%
YOUR Scan: TXG -5.92% = Even defensives selling
XLRE (Real Estate) -1.8%
YOUR Scan: FR -2.94%, SPG -1.83%, NLY -1.41%
XLF (Financials) -1.9%
YOUR Scan: STT -4.02%, CM -2.77%
MICRO + MACRO ALIGNMENT: Your scan (100% RED) matches ALL sectors negative (XLK -2.1%, XLI -2.5%, XLV -1.2%). Monday: Sectors + scan both positive = Real accumulation. Tuesday: Sectors + scan both negative = Real distribution. NO sector leadership. Even gold/energy down = Pure panic selling. This is war escalation reality check.
SECTION 5: DECISION – EXIT + NO TRADES
EXIT ALL COLLAR POSITIONS FROM MONDAY
TTM: Likely down -5% to -7% (semiconductors crushed)
GLW: Likely down -3% to -5% (tech hardware)
PARR: Energy premium evaporating as war looks longer/messier
Collar Protection: Your puts (4-5% OTM) should limit losses to 2-3% per position
Action: Close all positions at open. Take small losses. Live to fight another day.
SECTION 6: BOTTOM LINE
Monday 84% GREEN → Tuesday 100% RED. War escalating (Hormuz threat, nuclear warnings, 9 US dead). Markets betting quick regime change FAILED. QQQ -1.8%, XLK -2.1%, VIX 22.4. EXIT all collars. NO trades until: War de-escalates OR scan returns 30+ stocks with 70%+ GREEN. Your methodology saved you again – protected collar positions limit losses.
Saturday Feb 28: US + Israel launch massive coordinated strikes on Iran. Ali Khamenei (Supreme Leader, 86) KILLED in Tehran. 40+ Iranian officials killed. Israel drops 1,200+ munitions across 24 of 31 provinces.
Sunday March 1: Iran retaliates. Launches 541 drones + 165 ballistic missiles + 2 cruise missiles at UAE (Dubai Burj Al Arab hit), Qatar, Bahrain, Jordan. 3 US troops killed in Kuwait.
Monday March 2 (TODAY): 6 US service members killed total. Trump: “4-5 week operation,” doesn’t rule out ground troops. Israel conducting “large-scale strikes to establish air superiority.” Iranians celebrating Khamenei death in streets (Isfahan, Shiraz, Kermanshah).
Key Developments
US Objective: Regime change. Trump: “Eliminate intolerable threats” from Iran’s nuclear + missile programs
Nuclear Targets: Natanz nuclear site hit by US-Israeli strikes (March 1)
Naval: US sunk Iranian frigate IRIS Jamaran
Leadership: Ali Larijani (Iran security chief) established temporary leadership council. Refused to negotiate with US.
Regional Impact: UAE schools closed Mon-Wed. Dubai/Abu Dhabi airports targeted. Doha Qatar hit. Bahrain US Navy 5th Fleet HQ targeted.
Why: Tech rallying on 10-Year 4.02% relief, betting war won’t spread to Asia/Taiwan supply chains.
SECTOR ROTATION = WAR POSITIONING: Energy (XLE +0.7%) + Materials (XLB +0.9%) leading = Classic war trade. Gold +10.66%, oil refining +7.99%, aluminum +3.22% = Safe haven + supply disruption premium. Tech (XLK +1.1%) rallying = Markets betting war contained to Middle East, won’t spread to Taiwan/semiconductors. VIX 17.2 low = Either confident in quick regime change OR dangerously complacent.
SECTION 5: COLLAR OPPORTUNITIES – EXECUTE WITH CAUTION
WAR RISK: Execute 50-75% BUT watch for escalation (oil spike, China involvement, nuclear threats)
TTM +8.40% (Tech)
$113, Electronic components, XLK +1.1% confirms
War Risk: LOW (no Asia exposure in war)
GLW +4.97% (Tech)
$157.86, $135B, Blue chip, minimal Middle East exposure
PARR +7.99% (Energy) = WAR PLAY
$46.08, Oil refining, XLE +0.7% confirms
War Risk: MODERATE – Benefits from Middle East supply disruption BUT vulnerable to: 1) Quick war end = Premium disappears, 2) Oil spike hurts economy = Demand destruction
Collar Strategy: TIGHT puts (3-4% below) to protect against peace deal surprise
SECTION 6: BOTTOM LINE + WAR WATCH
PARADOX: Markets rallying (QQQ +1.2%) DURING active US-Iran war (Day 3, 6 US troops dead, Khamenei killed). Scan: 84% GREEN aligns with sectors (XLK +1.1%, XLE +0.7%). Execute collars 50-75%: TTM, GLW, PARR. BUT monitor: Oil spike, Iran nuclear threats, China/Russia response. VIX 17.2 = Complacency. War escalation risk REAL.
AI is showing up in hiring, recruiting, performance management, and employee monitoring. While these tools promise efficiency, they can also create significant legal risk if they result in discriminatory outcomes. In this episode of California Employment News, Weintraub Tobin attorneys Jackie Simonovich and Lukas Clary discuss how employer use of AI can implicate Title VII, the ADA, and FEHA, and review key new California AI laws and deadlines.
COMPLETE REVERSAL: 100% RED (19/19, 0 GREEN). Monday: 84% GREEN → Tuesday: 100% RED = TOTAL COLLAPSE. War escalation: Iran threatens Strait of Hormuz closure (20% global oil), nuclear retaliation. Worst: SMTC -7.04%, NVT -7.00%, TXG -5.92%, GFS -5.60%. NO TECH GREEN. QQQ -1.8%, SPY -1.2%, XLK -2.1%, XLI -2.5%. 10-Year 4.18% ↑ (from 4.02%). War reality hitting: Quick regime change bet FAILED. EXIT ALL COLLAR POSITIONS. NO NEW TRADES.
