Panel: Quantum ‘is going to move forward’

LONGMONT — Although they expressed concern about whether federal research funding would continue, panelists at a Longmont Economic Development Partnership summit on Tuesday agreed that industries involved in quantum computing would continue to grow.

What’s needed, they said, is education about quantum and workforce training to supply the skills the industries will need.

“There’s certainly uncertainty right now in terms of grant funding, but we are absolutely certain that this is going to move forward,” said Jessi Olsen, chief operating and financial officer for Elevate Quantum, a nonprofit consortium of about 70 stakeholders who represent industry, academia, capital and laboratories in Colorado and New Mexico. What’s needed most, she said, are “marketers that can communicate to general audiences about what quantum is,” as well as “accountants, managers and operations people to make this a reality.”

The U.S. Department of Commerce’s Tech Hub program last summer granted Elevate Quantum  a Phase 2 Tech Hub designation that unlocked $127 million in state and federal funds, which are expected to generate several billion more dollars of private investment in the region’s quantum industry.

However, “there’s a level of uncertainty about the federal government’s encouragement in the ecosystem,” noted panel moderator Mike Landes, senior business development manager at the Colorado Office of Economic Development and International Trade. “We’re not sure we’ll see continued federal investment.”

However, there’s “no uncertainty internationally,” said Kortny Rolston-Duce, director of ecosystem development at Broomfield-based Quantinuum LLC, which announced last month that it is partnering with Japanese investment giant SoftBank Corp. on a set of initiatives aimed at fueling commercialization through practical business applications.

Scott Sternberg, executive director of the CUbit Quantum Initiative at the University of Colorado Boulder, noted that the university’s $750 million in federal funding is “under threat right now. For us to advance as a university, a municipality, a country, we need political certainty.”

However, he said he remains “pretty bullish” about the industry’s growth in the region, especially because, “in places like Boulder, you can’t hit a 9-iron without hitting a quantum scientist.”

Olsen agreed, noting that Colorado ranks No. 1 for attracting new businesses and fifth in venture-capital investment per capita.

“The right leaders are in this region,” she said. “The universities, the national labs — these are the people who are creating these paths.”

Added Jenna Montague, director of optics and laser technology at Front Range Community College’s Center for Integrated Manufacturing in Longmont, “When things are stalled, you can’t just stop.”

Quantum theory attempts to explain the behavior of matter at atomic and subatomic levels. Because quantum computers take advantage of special properties of quantum systems such as superposition, their computing power and speed is exponentially greater than a traditional computer. 

Applications of quantum science could revolutionize the way that humans discover new drug therapies, map the cosmos, protect sensitive data, combat climate change and maybe even discover new forms of life in deep space.

Communicating that potential is key, the panelists agreed.

“Think about the first time you actually saw a laser, and think about what the laser has done for society,” Sternberg said. “Think about the first time you owned a digital camera, then think about, now, how we have more power in our pockets. That’s the kind of revolution we’re looking at.”

Joe McBreen, assistant superintendent for innovation at the St. Vrain Valley School District, said his schools are teaching the “three Rs” about quantum: that it’s “real, relevant and right now.”

McBreen noted “how often my peers see quantum as something way off in the distance. I liken it to 1903 and the Wright Brothers in Kitty Hawk, North Carolina. What was really amazing about that initial flight was that they could reproduce it over and over, and it kept getting better. So many people, so many communities are treating quantum like, ‘Eh, we can’t fly like birds.’ Yes we can! It’s real. It’s relevant.”

He said quantum science is ever more involved in the region’s leading industries such as aerospace, life sciences and clean technology.

“Fifty to 80% of jobs in quantum don’t require advanced quantum degrees,” he said, “and that gets me really excited because not every human is an academic.”

Added Olsen, “These are good jobs. They pay an average of over $125,000 a year.”

Education is key, and part of that is to “teach the teachers quantum,” Sternberg said. “Make everyone quantum aware. Introduce it to parents.”

Rolston-Duce said “it’s easy to introduce this in a school where parents are professionals,” but that schools at all socioeconomic levels should be involved.

“Education is the foundation of everything,” McBreen said, adding that at St. Vrain Valley schools, “our bedrock is that for every one of our 33,000 students, we want to give them a competitive advantage by empowering them with critical thinking skills and creativity.”

To advance quantum technology, Olsen said, “we need everybody at the table: employers, funders, government, end users. Everybody has a role to play.”

Toward that end, Sternberg said, CU is spearheading the establishment of an incubator for quantum-technology startup companies in east Boulder’s Flatiron Park corporate campus.

“This is an expensive business to be in,” he said.

Rolston-Duce said “Colorado is pretty pro-education, and I’d like to see that continue. Colorado is leading the world.”

McBreen said his schools are “not just dedicated to our district leading in Colorado but leading in the nation.

“Here in Longmont, we have the chance to do something really special during the next decade or two,” he said, “and I think we should take advantage of that.”

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