Quant firms fund PhDs and build AI labs in talent war
Amid fierce competition for AI researchers, quantitative trading firms are sponsoring PhD students and opening in-house research labs, Bloomberg reports.
By GennnAi··1 min read
Qube Research & TechnologiesQRT LabsXTX MarketsJPMorganHudson River TradingOptiverCFMJumpEntreprisesSociétéFlash
Qube Research & Technologies launched QRT Labs, which sponsors more than 70 PhD and postdoctoral researchers. XTX Markets, JPMorgan, Hudson River Trading, Optiver and CFM also run AI labs with differing goals. A Jump veteran says AI labs are now the biggest rival for researchers. Quant firms now staff recruiting booths at NeurIPS and ICML. Recruiters cited by coverage estimate first-year packages for machine-learning PhDs at $450,000 to $650,000.
Source: Bloomberg, published on October 27, 2026.