Move Over, Cathie Wood. Tom Lee and Dan Ives Are Stealing the ETF Spotlight

For a time, Cathie Wood was the face of active ETFs. During the 2020/21 boom, her lineup of innovation-focused funds turned her into a household name among investors. But as performance cooled, her star power dimmed, leaving the ETF industry without a headline-grabbing personality.

That gap is now being filled. Tom Lee and Dan Ives, two familiar faces from financial TV, have stepped into the spotlight with splashy new ETFs that are quickly attracting assets.

Lee, founder of Fundstrat and a frequent CNBC guest, is known for his bold macro calls. Ives, Wedbush’s global head of tech research, is one of the most quoted analysts on Wall Street, especially when it comes to technology stocks. 

Lee’s “Granny Shots”

Lee’s first fund, the Fundstrat Granny Shots US Large Cap ETF (GRNY), has ballooned to $2.4 billion in assets in under a year. The strategy looks for stocks benefiting from more than one theme at a time.

Some themes are broad, like easing monetary policy and the rising influence of millennials. Others are more specific, such as cybersecurity adoption and energy security.

Stocks are picked using a mix of quantitative screens and fundamental research, with only those that fit at least two themes making the cut.

The result is an equal-weighted basket of 20–50 stocks. GRNY currently holds 39 names across a wide range of industries, from big tech (Alphabet, Apple, Amazon) to financials (JPMorgan, Goldman Sachs) to utilities (Emerson Electric, Vistra). The expense ratio is 0.75%. 

Ives’ AI Revolution

In contrast to GRNY, the Dan Ives Wedbush AI Revolution ETF (IVES) is more narrowly focused. Technically it tracks the Solactive Wedbush Artificial Intelligence Index, but in practice the index is built from Ives’ proprietary ‘AI 30 Research Report,’ effectively turning the ETF into a reflection of his research calls.

The portfolio is market-cap weighted, with constraints that limit the size of any single holding. The end result is a tech-heavy lineup featuring Nvidia, Microsoft, Apple, Alphabet, Amazon, Tesla, Meta, AMD, Broadcom, and Palantir, among others.

Since its June launch, IVES has already crossed $500 million in assets, a strong start for a new ETF. Like GRNY, it charges 0.75%.

How They Compare To ARK

Wood’s ARK funds were the first truly celebrity-driven ETFs. Her flagship ARK Innovation ETF (ARKK) takes a multi-theme approach focused on disruptive innovation, spanning genomics, automation, fintech, AI, and more. 

She also offers narrower thematic ETFs like the ARK Next Generation Internet ETF (ARKW) and the ARK Genomic Revolution ETF (ARKG).

Lee’s GRNY shares ARKK’s multi-theme DNA but focuses on a more eclectic mix of macro and industry trends, rather than ARK’s tighter disruptive-tech lens. The IVES ETF, meanwhile, looks more like one of Wood’s specialized funds with its focus on AI. 

Of course, while their approaches differ, in many cases what investors are really drawn to with these ETFs is the personalities and perceived stock-picking prowess of the managers, rather than the specific strategies they use.

Another common thread is cost. Each charges 0.75%, which is a steep fee in a world of near-zero-cost index exposure, but one that’s becoming somewhat of a standard for personality-driven active ETFs. 

Investors have shown they’re willing to pay for access to a recognizable analyst’s investment thesis, particularly when it’s wrapped in an ETF they can trade with ease.

The Next Wave of ETF Star Power

Lee and Ives have overshadowed Wood this year. ARK’s 13 ETFs have collectively seen $1.1 billion in outflows in 2025, led by nearly $700 million leaving ARKK. But despite the outflows, ARK remains far larger, with $18.5 billion in assets across its suite of funds.

Lee and Ives, by contrast, each have just one ETF, though Lee has already filed for two more, including a small/midcap fund and an options-based version of GRNY. That suggests he may be building toward a franchise in the ARK mold. 

For Ives, it’s less certain whether he’ll expand beyond his first fund given his role at Wedbush. 

But whether or not he does, both he and Lee are enjoying strong early success. That shows the star manager era in ETFs didn’t end with Cathie Wood. If anything, she was just the opening act. And with retail participation in the stock market surging, Wood, Lee and Ives are likely to be joined by others eager to translate star power into ETF success of their own.