January 2025
Quantum Update
Happy 2025! I hope you had a restful holiday season. In what we hope makes for an auspicious start to the Year of Quantum, Elevate Quantum and our community members have kicked off the new year in remarkable style, and I’m excited to share several important updates:
NSF Engine Application
We are within striking distance of submitting our NSF Engine application, now less than a month away. Key New Mexico stakeholders and national partners are poised to make historic commitments as part of this initiative – fingers crossed for more exciting news in the weeks ahead!
Quantum Incubator Ribbon Cutting
We’re very excited to join CU Boulder this Wednesday, January 15th, for the ribbon cutting of the CU-led quantum incubator! This facility and program will play an integral role in the Mountain West ecosystem’s ability to seamlessly translate world-leading ideas into tomorrow’s largest companies.
Growing Team
We were joined in December by two new team members, Jeff Tyler and Kevin Persky, who are focusing on building out our business operations and commercial support capacity. Their addition couldn’t come at a more critical time, and we’re thrilled to have them on board.
Mission Statement
We’ve made updates to our mission statement – an evolution rather than revolution – aiming to make our mission as potent and focused as possible while aligning with our ongoing work. The board met just last week to ratify EQ’s mission (drum roll): Dramatically accelerating the commercialization of quantum!
I want to thank everyone for their incredible support throughout 2024. Here’s to a happy, healthy, and very quantum year ahead!
Best regards,
Zach and the Elevate Quantum Team
Building a Safer, More Affordable Nuclear Clock
A team of researchers, led by JILA and NIST Fellow and University of Colorado Boulder Physics professor Jun Ye, have found a way to make nuclear clocks a thousand times less radioactive and more cost-effective, thanks to a method creating thin films of thorium tetrafluoride. The study, which was published in Nature, marks a potential turning point in the development of nuclear clocks.
Quantum Advancement
Quantum Computing 2025 – Is It Turning The Corner?
HPCWire looks ahead at the future of quantum, with the Mountain West front and center.
“It feels like quantum computing is turning an important corner, maybe not the corner leading to the home stretch, but likely the corner beyond the turning back point…..Aspirations are sky high as shown here by the U.S.-based Elevate Quantum effort. Elevate Quantum (a multi-western state effort – Colorado, New Mexico, and Wyoming) says it will deliver 15,000 jobs, $2 billion in funding for startups, and $150 million in revenue by 2030.”
Quantum Impact
Tech Pioneer: Quantum Tech Positioned to Ignite Next Investment Boom
Elevate Quantum board member Dan Caruso spoke to Quantum Insider on the opportunities ahead of quantum companies, particularly in Colorado. ““All of our quantum companies are doing really well and, by making significant traction in real world applications, getting positive attention from the investment community. This is frontier tech. And it’s hard to raise money in frontier tech in the recent past, but it seems like there’s a transition that is happening with quantum. We can see money at good round valuations. So, we’re pretty excited.”
Quantum Nation
Consortium Bringing QuanTime to New Mexico
Vescent has been awarded “Entrepreneur of the Year” by the Jefferson County Economic Development Corporation! Receiving this honor, along with a congressional commendation from U.S. Representative Brittany Pettersen, is a celebration of our commitment to pushing boundaries and transforming ideas into impactful technologies.
Congrats to Vescent on the award!
Quantum Camps
Sandia Announced 2025 QCamp Dates
To celebrate the 2025 International Year of Quantum, Sandia National Labs, Computer Science Alliance, and Albuquerque Public Schools are partnering with Explora, SparCQS, and other community members to bring QuanTime to New Mexico for the week of February 8-14, 2025, encouraging K-12 students to “Get entangled with quantum science!”
The week-long event aims to encourage K-12 students to “Get entangled with quantum science” with a fun hands-on exploration of quantum science led by researchers and educators.
Quantum Jobs
Quantum Job Openings at Colorado School of Mines
Colorado School of Mines is hiring two faculty positions to advance its initiatives in quantum science and technology. The Department of Computer Science seeks an expert in artificial intelligence, machine learning, and quantum computing, and the Department of Physics is recruiting a specialist in quantum information, quantum optics, or condensed matter physics. These positions reflect Mines’ commitment to leading-edge research and education in shaping the future of quantum innovation.
Elevate Quantum is Hiring!
Work for Elevate Quantum as a Workplace Fellow
Quantum faces the challenge of three job openings for every one qualified candidate. To realize the promise of quantum and ensure equal opportunity for all individuals, we must do something differently. Elevate Quantum’s mission is both to realize quantum advancements earlier and more effectively, while also ensuring that everyone in our region and country can benefit. To do that, we need a Workforce Fellow who is ready to play a pivotal role in supporting the governance, strategy, and collaboration efforts of the organization’s workforce-related initiatives.
The ideal candidate is looking to become a known leader in quantum workforce development and has a desire to develop the skills and foundational relationships necessary to excel in a role with foundational career impact.
Be an Elevate Quantum Senior Project Manager at NCWIT
The National Center for Women in Technology (NCWIT) is looking for a candidate to drive forward the EQ INITIATIVE pillar with the Colorado University-Boulder. The role focuses on two main areas – project management and communication – while staying current on CU and State of Colorado policies and procedures. The candidate will be working in tandem both with CU Boulder as well as Elevate Quantum.
Upcoming Quantum Events
January 28-29
SPIE Quantum West Expo
San Francisco, CA
February 8-14
QuanTime New Mexico
Albuquerque Public Schools
Sign up for the Quantum Digest Newsletter by entering your email at the bottom of the page and read updates at the start of each month!
