Two Sigma Investments LP will ingratiate itself with New York's leading-edge technology sector by becoming the first corporate occupant of The Bridge, Cornell Tech's new campus on Roosevelt Island.
The uber-techie quantitative hedge fund manager is expanding its footprint in the Big Apple to let its financial engineers to work side by side and collaborate with Cornell Tech students, researchers and professors in its new Collision Lab, well away from its main offices in midtown Manhattan. The lab also will serve as an incubator for startup tech companies backed by Two Sigma Ventures, a subsidiary of the $41 billion hedge fund manager.
The move is slated for September.
Three of Two Sigma's cloud-computing experts are teaching at Cornell Tech during the spring semester, fostering cross-fertilization between industry practitioners and academia, further cementing the partnership between the firm and the university.
“Two Sigma has to a large extent succeeded because of its ability to harness technology,” said Alfred Z. Spector, the firm's chief technology officer, adding that “it is really important for us to move quickly with the agility to be at the edge of groundbreaking technology.”
Mr. Spector said the move will help Two Sigma, which he labeled a financial technology company, raise its profile within the wider technology community.
The Bridge is “a great space. It's an island next to an island, just one stop away from midtown and less than 30 minutes from our main office,” Mr. Spector said, noting that the “clear sea air” will be good for the firm's tech jocks.