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The Oracle of Bro-maha

Bill Ackman, the prolific X poster and hedge fund billionaire, has proposed a deal to position himself as his generation’s answer to Warren Buffett—his latest attempt to secure a place on Wall Street’s Mount Rushmore.

Bill Ackman
In our conversation, Bill told me that the Howard Hughes proposal was born out of his frustration with how the company has performed in the public markets ever since he spun it out 14 years ago. Photo: Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg/Getty Images
William D. Cohan
January 16, 2025

Ever since I met the flamboyant hedge fund manager Bill Ackman 12 years ago, in his office above the Brooklyn Diner on West 57th Street—fresh off his infamous CNBC feud with Carl Icahn—he’s touted his admiration for, and similarity to, the legendary investor Warren Buffett. Of course, the comparison was more than a little off. But Bill is Bill, with no shortage of ego. At 58, he still thinks of himself as his generation’s Buffett, who is still kicking it at 94 with a net worth of $140 billion—more than 300 positions above Ackman on the Bloomberg leaderboard.