Manifund's Hire of Caroline Ellison Sparks Firestorm in AI Funding Circle

AI funding platform Manifund announced it has hired Caroline Ellison — a central figure in the FTX collapse and former head of Alameda Research — triggering strong controversy across the AI and effective altruism (EA) communities. Critics aren't uniformly denying that she deserves a second chance; rather, they question the timing and manner of the hire, deepening the community's trust fracture once again.

Confirmed

• Manifund (an AI grants/funding platform) hired Caroline Ellison, formerly the head of Alameda Research, the fund that spent billions of dollars of customer funds and ultimately collapsed.
• The decision has drawn heavy criticism and discussion in both the AI and EA communities.

Points of contention

• The poster livgorton drew a clear distinction between two levels: whether she deserves a second chance is a moral and legal question, which he believes the answer to is "very clearly yes"; but whether this particular hire was appropriate is a practical question, and the core of the controversy.
• livgorton said he believes in redemption, but doesn't think believing in redemption means it has to be demonstrated this way, calling it a very bad decision that will cause significant harm.
• livgorton also pointed to a deeper issue: when someone who ran a collapsed fund lands their next job within the same community, a community that "keeps handing back the keys," it disheartens those who identify with the EA label — exposing governance and trust problems yet again.

Why it matters

• Manifund is a significant platform in the AI funding ecosystem, and its personnel decisions directly affect the community's trust in the fairness and judgment of how funds are allocated.
• The incident reflects the long-standing tension in EA/AI circles between "redemption culture" and accountability mechanisms: how to balance welcoming wrongdoers back with avoiding repeat mistakes remains unsettled.

2026-09-12 ~ 2026-09-12 · 6 related posts

• [source] Manifund hires Caroline Ellison, rattling the AI grants community — livgorton · 2026-09-12
• [source] livgorton clarifies: second chances are moral, but this hire is a practical question — livgorton · 2026-09-12
• EA Community Backlash as Fund Leader Behind Billion-Dollar Collapse Stays in the Ecosystem — livgorton · 2026-09-12
• Manifund hiring Caroline Ellison sparks AI community backlash — livgorton · 2026-09-12
• Manifund's hire of ex-FTX exec Caroline Ellison draws sharp AI community backlash — livgorton · 2026-09-12
• EA grant platform hires FTX's Caroline Ellison, drawing fire over alignment judgment — zetalyrae · 2026-09-12