ARK Investment Management LLC

ARK Investment Management LLC is an American investment management firm based in St. Petersburg, Florida that manages several actively managed exchange-traded funds (ETFs). It was founded by Cathie Wood in 2014. As of February 2021, the company had $50 billion in assets under management. By January 2022, assets had dropped to $23.9 billion, after a period of poor performance.

ARK Invest focuses on investing in disruptive technology. These technologies include artificial intelligence, DNA sequencing, CRISPR gene editing, robotics, electric vehicles, energy storage, fintech, 3D printing and blockchain technology. It has also invested in cryptocurrencies. The company invests in stocks it projects to double in value over a five-year period. From 2014 to 2021, the ARK Innovation ETF averaged an annual 39% return on investment, over three times the return of the S&P 500 during that time.

As its funds cannot hold cash, the firm also invests in numerous Big Tech stocks it refers to as “cash-like innovation stocks”.

ARK publishes current analysis, transactions and portfolios, and also opens its research reviews to the public. In addition to financial analysts, ARK employs scientists and computer scientists, believing they can better assess the impact of disruptive technologies. Most of the company’s analysts are millennials without prior Wall Street experience.