Basque Country, at the forefront of quantum science
May 07, 2024- The Kursaal hosts the international conference Quantum Matter from May 6th to 10th, gathering over 600 professionals from various countries.
- The world's leading experts in quantum technologies will actively participate in the event, sharing the latest developments in this rapidly evolving field of science and technology.
- Linked to the Basque Quantum Strategy of the Basque Government, the conference organized by the Donostia International Physics Center aims to promote idea exchange and collaboration, as well as to delve into the advancements of the expanding quantum technology.
The Basque Minister of Education, Jokin Bildarratz, participated this morning in the inauguration of the international conference Quantum Matter 2024, which will take place for three days at the Kursaal Palace in Donostia. This is the fourth edition of the event, aiming to bring together various communities involved in the science and technologies of quantum information and matter.
One of the main objectives of this international meeting, organized by the DIPC (Donostia International Physics Center), is to foster the incubation of new ideas and collaborations at the forefront of quantum technologies, emerging quantum materials, and new generations of quantum communication protocols, detection, and simulation.
This year, a total of 60 speakers and 25 exhibitors have confirmed their participation, including the presence of world-leading experts such as Ignacio Cirac from the Max Planck Institute of Quantum Optics, Jay M. Gambetta from IBM, Amir Yacoby from Harvard University, Michelle Simmons from the University of New South Wales (Australia), Leo Kouwenhoven from Delft University of Technology (Netherlands), Artur Ekert from the University of Oxford, and James S. Clarke from Intel.
Basque Quantum
The Minister of Education Jokin Bildarratz opened the session. During his speech, Bildarratz highlighted the disruptive potential of quantum technologies, which still remains difficult to quantify today. The commitment to quantum research has become the spearhead of the scientific policies of the Basque Government for the coming years, based on the BasQ Strategy - Basque Quantum. Led by the Department of Education, with the involvement of the Provincial Councils of Araba, Bizkaia, and Gipuzkoa, and with the strategic participation of IBM, BasQ aims to position Euskadi as the most advanced Quantum Technologies Hub in Southern Europe. IBM's new System One quantum computer, the sixth in the world of IBM's quantum supercomputing network, currently under development, will become a reality in the second half of 2025.
In this regard, it is worth noting that the Basque Country has made strides in excellence research; joint projects have been launched between the Basque Science Network and IBM Research. Regarding education, educational programs are being developed for researchers, industry, university education, and vocational training, with 80 Basque researchers trained in quantum computing. For the first time, the Congress includes an Industrial Forum session on Thursday, March 9th, addressing the main actions developed and results obtained through collaboration between IBM and the Basque Scientific System, led by the renowned IBM Research expert Jay Gambetta. The full program is available at the following link: https://www.quantumconf.eu/2024/program.php?d=06
