CERN, the European Organization for Nuclear Research headquartered in Geneva, formally launched its Quantum Technology Initiative (QTI) in 2020. As described on CERN’s QTI page, the initiative was approved by CERN management following a series of pilot investigations that began with a workshop on quantum computing in high-energy physics organized by CERN openlab in November 2018.
CERN QTI is structured around four research domains: quantum computing and algorithms, quantum theory and simulation, quantum sensing and metrology, and quantum communication and networks. The program brings together researchers from multiple CERN departments and experiments to explore how quantum technologies can serve the organization’s scientific mission and broader societal applications.
Over its initial three-year phase, CERN QTI established collaborations with IBM and several universities in CERN member states, producing peer-reviewed publications and building an international advisory board composed of experts nominated by the 23 CERN member states. Graduate students were selected for the first research projects beginning in early 2021.