My guest in this episode is Kai Wu, CEO and founder of Sparkline Capital. Kai is a pioneer in the measurement of intangible value.  Using machine learning, he tackles unstructured data sources like patent filings, earnings transcripts, LinkedIn network connections, and GitHub code repositories to try to measure value across the four key pillars of Brand, Intellectual Property, Network, and Human Capital. We discuss why intangibles are important, how they differ from the traditional factor zoo, the opportunities and risks of unstructured data, and how even big data can have small data problems within it. Finally, we discuss Kai’s most recent applications of his research to the world of crypto. Please enjoy my conversation with Kai Wu.

Brendan Ahern, CIO at KraneShares, and Kai Wu, Founder and CIO of Sparkline Capital, join the discussion with insights into the shifting landscape of Chinese stocks and the impact of government regulation. They dive into the latest challenges in the tech sector, including the Voyager bankruptcy and its implications for crypto regulation. The conversation also explores the intersection of U.S.-China tech dynamics, innovative investment strategies, and the role of machine learning in finance. Their expertise sheds light on navigating market volatility and emerging investment opportunities.

Kai Wu, Founder of Sparkline Capital, discusses his research on intangible assets, measuring and turning them into a value factor, benefits of intangible value to a multi-factor portfolio, constructing a 6-factor model, diversifying a portfolio using six factors, finding companies building protective moats around intangible assets, and the potential acceptance of the six factor model in empirical finance.