The Bloch Quantum Tech Hub, a coalition of Fortune 500 companies, startups, universities, and government agencies, has been awarded $500,000 by the US Department of Commerce’s Economic Development Administration to accelerate the adoption of quantum technologies. The hub, led by the Chicago Quantum Exchange, aims to combat financial fraud, secure the energy grid, and develop life-saving drugs. Recent partnerships include collaborations with the FBI Chicago, IonQ, and MxD to advance quantum innovation.
Key individuals involved in the effort include Meera Raja, interim regional innovation officer of The Bloch, and David Awschalom, director of the Chicago Quantum Exchange. The award is part of the Biden-Harris Administration’s Investing in America agenda, which aims to scale up production of critical technologies like quantum computing. With this funding, The Bloch plans to strengthen its consortium and attract additional capital, building on recent wins such as Illinois Governor JB Pritzker’s announcement of a quantum campus development and a partnership with PsiQuantum.
Quantum Innovation Hub Receives $500,000 Award for Industry Adoption
The Bloch Quantum Tech Hub has been awarded a $500,000 Consortium Accelerator Award by the US Department of Commerce’s Economic Development Administration (EDA) to accelerate the industry adoption of quantum technologies. This award will strengthen the consortium and attract additional capital to drive economic growth in the region.
The Bloch is a unique coalition of Fortune 500 companies, quantum startups, world-leading universities, state and city governments, community colleges, and economic and workforce development nonprofits. It is the nation’s only quantum innovation team that rallies entire sectors around society’s most urgent challenges, such as combating financial fraud, securing the energy grid, and accelerating the development of life-saving drugs.
In recent months, The Bloch has made significant progress in partnering with various organizations to advance its mission. For instance, it has partnered with the FBI Chicago to build first-in-the-nation partnerships to secure quantum assets, rallied quantum technologists and the financial sector around fraud detection, and collaborated with community colleges and industry partners to develop the future quantum workforce.
Accelerating Quantum Technologies for Real-World Impact
The Bloch’s efforts are focused on harnessing quantum technologies to solve real problems for real people. By supporting The Bloch, the EDA is advancing its efforts to enhance fraud detection, improve the energy grid, and accelerate drug development. This work can potentially create jobs and strengthen economic and national security.
Meera Raja, The Bloch’s interim regional innovation officer and senior vice president of deep tech for P33, emphasized that this award will enable The Bloch to continue building momentum in a quantum ecosystem that has scored a series of high-profile wins. The progress made by The Bloch, along with projects such as the CQE-led NSF Engines Development Award, is projected to drive $60 billion in economic impact for the region by 2035.
Building Momentum in Quantum Ecosystem
The Tech Hubs Program’s Consortium Accelerator Award comes at a time of extraordinary progress for an ecosystem where each project has the potential to amplify the rest. The award will accelerate industrial engagement in the region, adding to the momentum and bringing it closer to realizing quantum technologies’ transformative potential.
David Awschalom, the Liew Family Professor of Molecular Engineering in the University of Chicago’s Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering and director of the CQE, highlighted that this boost will enable The Bloch to continue building its ecosystem. He emphasized that the EDA’s award will accelerate industrial engagement in the region, adding to the momentum and putting it closer to realizing the transformative potential of quantum technologies.
Federal Support for Quantum Innovation
The Tech Hubs program is a flagship initiative of the Biden-Harris Administration’s Investing in America agenda, which supports regional efforts to scale up the production of critical technologies, including quantum technologies. The bipartisan CHIPS and Science Act authorized the program, which President Biden signed into law in August 2022.
Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Economic Development Alejandra Y. Castillo emphasized that the Biden-Harris Administration is working to build world-class ecosystems across the nation that will advance America’s global leadership in technologies of the future, catalyze the creation of good jobs, and strengthen US national and economic security. She highlighted that these Consortium Accelerator Awards demonstrate the level of excellence every designee embodies and will enable Tech Hubs to not only keep up their momentum but also leverage their coveted designation to attract additional collaboration and capital.
Quantum Technologies for a Stronger Economy
The award received by The Bloch Quantum Tech Hub is a significant step towards advancing quantum technologies in the region. By supporting this ecosystem, the EDA is investing in the development of critical technologies that have the potential to drive economic growth and create jobs. As the Biden-Harris Administration continues to support regional efforts to scale up the production of critical technologies, it is likely that the US will maintain its global leadership in quantum innovation.
External Link: Click Here For More
