Franz Josef Schreiber, a doctoral candidate at Freie Universität Berlin, will receive funding through the 2026 Google PhD Fellowship in Quantum Computing. This marks the third time a researcher from Jens Eisert’s working group has earned the fellowship, a distinction no other German university has achieved. Schreiber’s research focuses on the intersection of quantum computing and artificial intelligence, specifically investigating how quantum models can improve AI.
Eisert’s Group Achieves Third Google Quantum Computing Fellowship
Freie Universität Berlin is the only German university to attract support from the Google PhD Fellowship Program in Quantum Computing, with Franz Josef Schreiber as the latest recipient. The program selects candidates globally from institutions including MIT, University of Oxford and University of California, Berkeley. Eisert attributes the repeated success of his team to the quality of their work and Berlin’s growing reputation as a center for quantum research, Google says.
Schreiber’s work also explores whether quantum computers can outperform conventional machines in solving optimization problems, and under what conditions such improvements might occur. Eisert emphasized the significance of Freie Universität’s position, stating, “What makes this win all the more incredible is that Freie Universität is the only German university to date to receive a grant of this type in this subject. To know that we in Berlin are among the top performers in our field is very encouraging.”
The fact that this is the third early-career researcher from our working group to have received a Google PhD Fellowship in Quantum Computing is a testament to the groundbreaking work our team produces as well as the reputation Berlin has as a hub for quantum research.
Jens Eisert, professor of quantum physics at Freie Universität Berlin
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