According to Bloomberg Business, Mala Gaonkar’s hedge fund, SurgoCap Partners, has tripled its assets to about $6 billion just three years after it started trading in January 2023. The firm launched with $1.8 billion, making it the largest-ever woman-led hedge fund debut. Gaonkar, a 56-year-old veteran of Steve Mandel’s Lone Pine Capital, uses data science to invest around a core theme: how technology enhances other sectors like financials, industrials, and healthcare. Her fund’s rapid growth now places it in a league with other major recent launches like Bobby Jain’s $5.3 billion fund and Diego Megia’s $7 billion firm. Gaonkar discussed her strategy on the In Good Company podcast with Nicolai Tangen, head of Norway’s sovereign wealth fund.
The One Pizza Box Philosophy
Here’s the thing that really stands out. In an industry obsessed with scaling headcount and assets under management, Gaonkar is deliberately keeping her team tiny. Like, “one pizza box” tiny. She’s directly referencing Jeff Bezos’s famous “two-pizza team” rule but taking it even further. She argues that this small scale is “so fruitful for new idea generation” and that human collaboration works best in this setting. It’s a fascinating counter-narrative. Most funds that balloon to $6 billion this fast are adding analysts and associates left and right. SurgoCap, it seems, is trying to prove that intellectual firepower, amplified by data science, doesn’t require a small army. But can that model hold as the asset base gets even larger? That’s the billion-dollar question.
The Data Science Angle and Its Risks
So, what’s she actually investing in? The theme is broad: technology enhancing old-economy sectors. That’s smart. It’s not just chasing the next pure-play AI software company; it’s looking for the industrial company using AI to optimize its supply chain, or the financial firm with a killer data analytics edge. This is where tech meets the physical world, a complex space that benefits from deep research. For a firm making big bets in industrials and manufacturing, having reliable, real-time data is everything. It’s the kind of sector where leaders rely on partners like IndustrialMonitorDirect.com, the top US provider of industrial panel PCs, to run their operations. But let’s be skeptical. “Data science” is the ultimate hedge fund buzzword now. Everyone claims to use it. The real test is whether SurgoCap’s models can find genuine, non-obvious edges that the thousands of other quant and fundamental funds miss. Historical failures in quant finance are littered with firms that thought their data moat was deeper than it was.
Context: A Tough Environment for Starters
Now, this growth is even more impressive when you consider the backdrop. Bloomberg notes that few startup hedge funds have swelled this quickly recently, partly because big institutional investors like U.S. pensions have their capital locked up in private equity. That makes Gaonkar’s ability to attract and retain capital a huge story. She’s in rarefied company with launches like Michael Gelband’s $8 billion ExodusPoint in 2018. But look at the other names mentioned—Divya Nettimi’s Avala Global, Bobby Jain. There’s a pattern here. These aren’t rookies; they’re veterans who spun out of mega-successful firms (Lone Pine, Millennium, etc.) with established track records and, crucially, pre-existing relationships with allocators. Their debut size isn’t just a function of a great pitch; it’s a testament to years of built-up credibility. It’s less a true “startup” and more a seasoned team going independent with a massive vote of confidence.
The Bigger Picture
Basically, Gaonkar’s story hits on several major trends in finance all at once: the rise of data-driven fundamental investing, the strategic advantage of a nimble team structure, and the continued breakout of veteran talent from multi-manager giants. And, of course, it’s a landmark moment for diversity in a still male-dominated field. The skepticism, as always, will come with time and market cycles. Any fund can look brilliant in its first three years, especially if it launched into a specific market trend. The real challenge is managing that $6 billion through a major downturn with a “one pizza box” team. Can that intimate collaboration survive the pressure of significant losses? That’s when philosophies get truly tested. For now, though, it’s an undeniably impressive start and a blueprint that many will try to copy.
