Assertion Supported AI assessment confidence: 90% certainty 4/5 debate potential 1/5

Hennessy: Stanford lost roughly 28% of its endowment during the 2008 crisis

John Hennessy · a16z Podcast | From Research to Startup, There and Back Again · Jan 2, 2019 · at 13:56

John Hennessy, former President of Stanford University, recalls the severity of the financial shock Stanford experienced during the 2008 global financial crisis.

0:00 / 0:03exact quote · 3.4s

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“About 28% of the endowment vaporized in a six-month period.”

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The claim, plainly

Stanford University lost approximately 28% of its endowment in a six-month period during the 2008 financial crisis.

a quote alone can be ambiguous, so this restates it with the references and context of the conversation around it resolved. AI-written; the tape below the player is the source.

Assessment

Stanford University financial records and annual reports for FY 2009 confirm that the university's endowment declined from $17.2 billion as of August 31, 2008, to $12.6 billion as of August 31, 2009. This represents a total loss of $4.6 billion, or approximately 27%, with the Stanford Management Company recording an investment loss of 25.9% to 27% in the Merged Pool. While official audited figures are published on an annual basis, institutional reports and historical market timelines confirm that the vast majority of this decline occurred during the acute six-month market collapse between September 2008 and March 2009, confirming then-former Stanford President John Hennessy's approximate figure of 28%.

Stanford University's official endowment value dropped from $17.2 billion on August 31, 2008, to $12.6 billion on August 31, 2009 (a 27% decline).
The Stanford Management Company reported a net investment loss of roughly 25.9% to 27% in the Merged Pool for FY 2009.
The acute phase of the downturn and the primary loss in portfolio value took place over the six-month period between September 2008 and March 2009.

Checked against

[1] a16z.com [2] stonybrook.edu [3] stanford.edu [4] stanford.edu [5] stanfordmag.org [6] stanfordmag.org [7] nih.gov [8] stanford.edu

Stanford endowment loss July 2008 December 2008 OR February 2009 Stanford endowment loss 2008 2009 six month period financial report Hennessy Stanford endowment "28%" OR "28 percent" OR "six month" OR "six months" Stanford endowment lost 28 percent 2008 financial crisis "Stanford" endowment "six month" OR "six months" 2008 OR 2009

assessed as of 2026-08-27

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endowment Stanford University

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