The head of activist investments at hedge fund Elliott Management, Cohn, 34, is leading the hedge fund's latest foray into the tech buyout business, reports Bloomberg's Beth Jinks.
Activist investors buy a portion of a company and then try to convince it to make changes. Private equity firms buy companies outright and make the changes they want to see themselves.
Cohn is recruiting in Silicon Valley for the new - reportedly multibillion dollar - unit, which will be based in San Francisco.
Elliott Management, founded by Paul Singer and known for its ongoing legal battle with Argentina over a bond default, is a New York-based hedge fund that oversees about $25 billion in assets.
As a shareholder activist, Cohn tends to target lesser-known tech companies.
After initially resisting, many of his targets have wound up doing what he wants them to do. Those targets include Novell Inc, Riverbed Technology, and Informatica Corp, Bloomberg reported.
It looks like tech companies will need be on extra-high alert now.