PR83223

ESPOO, Finland, 11 March, 2020/PRNewswire=KYODO JBN/

Top quantum expert tapped to lead the new facility

IQM Finland Oy (IQM) (http://www.meetiqm.com/ ), today announced an expansion

through the establishment of its first subsidiary company, IQM Germany, located

in Munich. The company also announced the appointment of renowned quantum

computing and quantum technology expert, Prof. Enrique Solano as CEO of IQM

Germany. IQM is an emerging hardware leader focused on developing quantum

computers based on scalable high-speed superconducting quantum processors.

The company was last Friday named as one of the ten most promising startups in

Finland by the Finnish financial magazine Talouselama

(https://www.meetiqm.com/2020/03/06/iqm-receives-a-prestigious-startup-prize/ ).

The expansion move intends to harness local quantum expertise to create a

co-design hub that tightens the interaction between quantum hardware and

quantum software development. The idea is to optimize quantum chips at the

earliest development stage to meet gate design, connectivity, gate fidelity,

and other technical imperatives for scalable quantum computing. The novel

co-design model lets IQM collaborate closely with its current and future software

partners throughout Europe to accelerate the development of useful quantum

solutions for specialized applications.

Prof. Enrique Solano will lead the Munich operation as CEO of IQM Germany.

The Peruvian/Spanish physicist is a renowned international expert in quantum

computing, quantum simulation, quantum artificial intelligence, and quantum

technologies. He joins IQM from his leading positions in two quantum centers in

Bilbao, Spain, and Shanghai, China.

"Munich was the obvious location for the new facility," said IQM's CEO, Dr. Jan

Goetz. "For Germany and Bavaria, in particular, building a quantum computer is

a strategic national priority. That commitment has produced an ecosystem of

quantum innovation, with stakeholders from industry, academia and the investor

community collectively focused on advancing Europe's quantum leadership."

The new facility marks IQM's first expansion outside of Finland. Since its

debut last July, the company has ramped up fast to build an infrastructure to

produce scalable quantum devices efficiently. At its operations lab in Espoo,

qubit samples are already being produced on a wafer scale every week. The

devices are benchmarked onsite for uniformity, accuracy, quality, and other

imperatives for real-world applications. The high-throughput/fast-feedback

model allows IQM technologists to constantly monitor the quality of the

fabrication processes, and thus ensure high-quality quantum processors.

At present, IQM´s team of experts drives the business in four core areas:

fabrication, scalable electronics, software, and systems integration. The new

team in Munich will extend these efforts to design special-purpose processors

for near-term algorithms, while also focusing on IP development. Of the

company's nearly three dozen employees, 25 hold PhDs, almost all in physics,

and specifically quantum computing.

Prof. Solano adds new weight to the multi-national IQM team with his record of

leadership in academic and entrepreneurial ecosystems. His previous roles

include Distinguished Professor and Director at QuArtist - Quantum Artificial

Intelligence for Science and Technology at Shanghai University in China, as

well as similar positions at the International Center of Quantum Computing and

Quantum Technologies at the University of the Basque Country in Bilbao, Spain.

He obtained his PhD in physics from the Universidade Federal de Rio de Janeiro in Brazil.

"The hardware-software co-design model is different and exciting and brings a

design-think mindset to quantum computing," said Prof. Solano. "It lets us

develop and optimize next-generation chip architectures for specific applications

and implement quantum computing algorithms for industries with entrenched

operations in Germany and throughout Europe. For example, financial models

and predictions for car manufacturers, as well as models for drug design, material design,

aerodynamics, nuclear reactions, biological systems, intelligent devices, use-cases for s

mart cities, and much more. I'm thrilled to join the company."

Prof. Mikko Möttönen, Founder and Chief Scientist of IQM added: "I have long

admired Enrique for his ability to solve extremely difficult theoretical problems

that are useful for practical application. He's already building a team of experts

at IQM to increase our understanding of quantum algorithms to develop financial

models for myriad applications. This will enable us to quickly optimize our hardware

for new algorithmic inventions produced by our software partners. He's a dream addition

to the team."

For information on IQM, please visit www.meetiqm.com

IQM Contact

Jan Goetz, CEO IQM; email: jan@meetiqm.com; +358 505 666 483 (English & German)

Mikko Mottonen, Chief Scientist, IQM; email: mikko@meetiqm.com;

+358 505 940 950 (English & Finnish)

Enrique Solano, CEO IQM Germany; email: enrique.solano@meetiqm.com;

+49 151 7217 3120 (English & Spanish)

Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1121497/IQM_Logo.jpg

Photo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1121499/IQM_Solano.jpg

Photo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1121498/IQM_Quantum_Computer.jpg

SOURCE: IQM Finland Oy