Vahagn Kirakosyan

Vahagn Kirakosyan is a quantitative researcher and director of research at Qognitive, a company whose quantum-cognition machine learning (QCML) approach is applied to financial forecasting and other high-dimensional problems. He represented Armenia at the International Mathematical Olympiad in 2008 (Honourable Mention) and 2009 (Bronze Medal). His published work appears in Risk.net and on arXiv (q-fin.ST, q-bio.QM), and he holds a degree in Mathematics of Finance (Columbia University, per his public profiles). Index aggregators additionally list prior quantitative research roles at Duality Group, a systematic quantitative hedge fund, and MIO Partners, an asset manager.

Notes12

• Quant employment verification: CONFIRMED. Actual quantitative-finance role: Director of Quantitative Analytics / Director of Research at Qognitive, a company whose published research applies quantum-cognition machine learning to financial forecasting (stock returns, high-yield bond similarity, firm linkages) in q-fin venues; the role is independently corroborated by Risk.net's author bio ('director of research at Qognitive'), arXiv affiliations, and a Qognitive correspondence email on a 2025 arXiv paper, and the identity is supported by the Armenian IMO record plus the matching LinkedIn handle. Employer classification: Qognitive = AI/quantitative-analytics firm applying ML to financial markets (not a trading desk); Qognitive's financial-forecasting work is quantitative finance. A prior Quantitative Research role at Duality Group (a systematic/quantitative hedge fund, founded 2019 by ex-Two Sigma and Google staff) is supported only by index aggregators, and a Senior Quantitative Research Analyst role at MIO Partners (a registered investment adviser and McKinsey subsidiary, i.e. an asset manager) is likewise index/caller-lead only, not primary-confirmed.
• Corresponding author (with Giuseppe Di Caro) on arXiv 2506.03199, 'Quantum Cognition Machine Learning for Forecasting Chromosomal Instability', where his affiliation is Qognitive, Inc., Miami Beach, FL and his published email is [contact omitted].Jul 22, 2025
• Authored/co-authored the Risk.net 'Cutting Edge' piece 'Quantum cognition machine learning: financial forecasting' with Ryan Samson, Jeffrey Berger, Luca Candelori, Kharen Musaelian and Dario Villani, applying QCML to forecasting stock returns.Oct 2024
• Risk.net author bio identifies him as 'director of research at Qognitive', the primary-source title; index aggregators instead list 'Director of Quantitative Analytics', so the title is recorded in two variants.
• Listed as a Luys Foundation scholarship student under 'Mathematics of Finance', the Armenian foundation (founded 2009) that funds graduate study abroad; a separate profile states his degree as 'Mathematics of Finance @Columbia University in the City of New York', consistent with the Columbia MAFN program.
• Olympiad record: IMO 2008 (Armenia) total 12, rank 297, Honourable Mention; IMO 2009 (Armenia) total 17, rank 220, Bronze Medal.
• Co-author on arXiv 2506.19856, 'Supervised Similarity for Firm Linkages' (q-fin.ST), listed with Qognitive, Inc., Miami Beach, FL affiliation alongside Joshua Rosaler, Luca Candelori, Dhagash Mehta, Kharen Musaelian, Stefano Pasquali, Ryan Samson and Martin T. Wells.Jun 9, 2025
• Duality Group is a technology-driven quantitative trading firm founded 2019 by former senior employees of Two Sigma and Google, applying ML and alternative data to systematic trading strategies, HQ New York, 50+ employees; this classifies it as a genuine systematic quant hedge fund, not merely a name containing 'quant'.
• The caller-supplied lead identity 'taiga-449228065' and the listed role dates (Qognitive from Jan 2024, Duality Jun 2020-Jan 2024, MIO Jan 2020) are unverified; the underlying index shows the three employers, but precise start/end dates and the Duality/MIO sequencing are index-only and were not corroborated by any primary source.
• Index aggregator ContactOut lists 'Director of Quantitative Analytics at Qognitive January 2024 - Present' and 'Quantitative Research at Duality Group' as prior experience (index-only, not independently confirmed).
• MIO Partners, Inc. is a global investment and advisory institution and a registered investment adviser regulated by the SEC, and a subsidiary of McKinsey & Company, i.e. an institutional asset manager rather than a market-making or prop-trading firm.
• Co-authors a recurring Qognitive research circle (Ryan Samson, Luca Candelori, Kharen Musaelian, Dario Villani, Jeffrey Berger, Alexander Abanov), appearing repeatedly across QCML papers in q-fin and q-bio venues, indicating a sustained research collaboration rather than a single paper.