Key Takeaways
- • Two Sigma has recruited Francesco Maria Delle Fave, a senior AI technologist from Goldman Sachs with eight years of experience, as senior vice president for AI and machine learning at its London office.
- • Delle Fave will lead development of AI and machine learning tools powering Two Sigma's research platform, focusing on reinforcement learning and synthetic data—areas where the hedge fund has maintained active research programs since 2021.
- • Two Sigma's London compensation structure ($507k per head in wages and salaries) exceeds competitors including Citadel and Brevan Howard, reflecting aggressive talent acquisition in AI roles where the firm pays up to $220k in base salary alone in the US.
- • The hire underscores intensifying competition for AI talent between hedge funds and investment banks, with Two Sigma positioning itself as a veteran in generative AI (five years) and natural language processing (over a decade), predating broader industry adoption.
- • Goldman Sachs has been deploying AI strategically across its operations, including using it to justify workforce reductions, making Delle Fave's departure indicative of talent migration toward specialized quant and AI-native hedge funds.
Summary
Two Sigma has secured Francesco Maria Delle Fave, a senior vice president with deep expertise in artificial intelligence and machine learning, from Goldman Sachs' London office. Delle Fave completed eight years at Goldman, most recently serving as EMEA head of applied AI and EMEA head of the data science and machine learning in quantitative finance (DSML QF) team, having initially joined as a quant strategist.
At Two Sigma, Delle Fave will focus on developing AI and machine learning-driven tools that power the hedge fund's research platform. His background in reinforcement learning—a specialized AI technique distinct from mainstream machine learning and natural language processing applications—aligns with Two Sigma's existing research capabilities. The fund has been actively working on reinforcement learning since at least 2021 and maintains established expertise in natural language processing spanning more than a decade. According to Mike Schuster, Two Sigma's AI core team lead, the firm has leveraged generative AI for at least five years, positioning it ahead of the broader financial services industry's recent AI adoption wave.
The hire reflects accelerating competition for AI talent between hedge funds and traditional investment banking institutions. Goldman Sachs, despite being among the cautiously progressive banks on AI deployment, has used the technology to justify staff reductions—a dynamic that has prompted specialized talent to seek opportunities at firms like Two Sigma where AI research and deployment are core operational functions rather than cost-optimization tools.
Two Sigma's compensation strategy supports this competitive positioning. The firm's London entity recorded wages and salaries of £377k ($507k) per employee in its most recent annual accounts filed with Companies House, exceeding peers such as Citadel and Brevan Howard. In the United States, Two Sigma recruits AI researchers at $220k in base salary alone. Two Sigma's Chief Technology Officer Jeff Wecker has previously stated the firm is "hiring and hiring pretty aggressively," signaling sustained investment in technology talent acquisition across markets.
At Two Sigma, Delle Fave will focus on developing AI and machine learning-driven tools that power the hedge fund's research platform. His background in reinforcement learning—a specialized AI technique distinct from mainstream machine learning and natural language processing applications—aligns with Two Sigma's existing research capabilities. The fund has been actively working on reinforcement learning since at least 2021 and maintains established expertise in natural language processing spanning more than a decade. According to Mike Schuster, Two Sigma's AI core team lead, the firm has leveraged generative AI for at least five years, positioning it ahead of the broader financial services industry's recent AI adoption wave.
The hire reflects accelerating competition for AI talent between hedge funds and traditional investment banking institutions. Goldman Sachs, despite being among the cautiously progressive banks on AI deployment, has used the technology to justify staff reductions—a dynamic that has prompted specialized talent to seek opportunities at firms like Two Sigma where AI research and deployment are core operational functions rather than cost-optimization tools.
Two Sigma's compensation strategy supports this competitive positioning. The firm's London entity recorded wages and salaries of £377k ($507k) per employee in its most recent annual accounts filed with Companies House, exceeding peers such as Citadel and Brevan Howard. In the United States, Two Sigma recruits AI researchers at $220k in base salary alone. Two Sigma's Chief Technology Officer Jeff Wecker has previously stated the firm is "hiring and hiring pretty aggressively," signaling sustained investment in technology talent acquisition across markets.
Go deeper than the headline
Research every firm in this story, track the ones that matter and get the daily briefing — free for 7 days.