Local and global leaders in Australia’s quantum industry have today united to launch a major new group called the Australian Quantum Alliance (AQA).
The AQA will be the voice of the quantum industry in Australia. The mission of the AQA is to promote, strengthen and connect Australia’s quantum ecosystem. The AQA is being launched under the auspices of the Tech Council of Australia, the peak body representing Australia’s tech sector.
The AQA’s formation recognises the global potential and growing impact of the quantum sector in Australia. It also recognises the need to have a single industry group to work with governments on a range of policy issues impacting the sector, including the Australian Government’s Quantum Strategy, the regulation of critical technologies, the design of the proposed Critical Technologies Fund, and skills and migration.
The AQA has been formed by leaders across the quantum industry, and includes nine local and global companies. Founding members include leading local companies Quintessence Labs, Q-CTRL, Quantum Brilliance, Silicon Quantum Computing, Nomad Atomics and Diraq, and world-leading global companies Google, Microsoft and Rigetti.
New research released today by the Tech Council highlights that the quantum industry is one of Australia’s most high-potential emerging sectors. More than 3% of global quantum start-ups originate in Australia, compared to 1.7% of start-ups on average. The Australian quantum industry is attracting 3.6% of all global VC investment in the quantum industry, well in excess of Australia’s global GDP share of 1.6%. Australia is also successfully attracting investment in quantum research and development from some of the world’s most significant global companies.
“I welcome the establishment of the Australian Quantum Alliance, the culmination of a year’s collaboration between quantum industry stakeholders and the government. With the prowess of the TCA, we hope to collectively drive the development of a vibrant quantum industry, provide guidance to the government on the development of the industry, help corporate decision makers understand and adopt quantum technology, and build strong domestic and international partnerships for the greatest national benefit to Australia.” Vikram Sharma – Founder and CEO.
“Australia is leading the world in quantum research. Now we need to lead in commercialising that research by creating, scaling and attracting world-leading quantum companies in Australia. The AQA will help ensure that Australia maintains its head start in the global quantum race,” Ms Kate Pounder, CEO of TCA said.
“The Tech Council is proud to add global and local leaders in quantum to the Tech Council of Australia. This highlights the breadth and depth of Australia’s rapidly growing tech sector, and its potential to be a source of new jobs, growth and investment in Australia. We look forward to working with industry, government and the research community to take the quantum sector from strength to strength.”
In the words of our members
“Like many of our peers, the Diraq team of over 25 electrical engineers has attracted a rich talent pool from both Australia and all around the world – the Alliance will assist in strengthening the unified voice to ensure policies allow us to keep attracting world class talent to the thriving Australian quantum environment,” Professor Andrew Dzurak, CEO of Diraq.
“Australia is well positioned as a global powerhouse in supporting near term use of quantum technologies. The Alliance is crucial towards accelerating awareness and policy shaping which promotes the critical importance of Australia’s leadership in quantum technology.” Mark Luo, Co-Founder of Quantum Brilliance.
“Nomad Atomics is committed to ensuring the broad commercialisation of quantum sensing solutions into the world’s largest and most innovative sectors. We believe that Australia is uniquely placed to help drive and lead this endeavour. The formation of the AQA shows the unity of the Australian quantum sector and is an important step in the realisation of our mutual goals.” Paul Wigley, COO of Nomad Atomics.
“QuintessenceLabs welcomes the establishment of the Australian Quantum Alliance, the culmination of a year’s collaboration between quantum industry stakeholders and the government. With the prowess of the TCA, we hope to collectively drive the development of a vibrant quantum industry, provide guidance to the Government on the development of the industry, help corporate decision makers understand and adopt quantum technology, and build strong domestic and international partnerships for the greatest national benefit to Australia.” Vikram Sharma, Founder and CEO of QuintessenceLabs.
“Through our partnership, we look forward to enabling growth in the Australian quantum ecosystem, developing quantum computing capabilities within the Australian workforce, and achieving quantum advantage for use cases of commercial and strategic value to Australia.” David Garvin, Head of Applications, Quantum Finance at Rigetti.
“Australia has been at the forefront of quantum computing since the early 2000’s pioneering globally unique technologies to manufacture atomic precision silicon processors here in Sydney. The formation of the Australian Quantum Alliance will help to ensure that Australia supports its high technology quantum information companies to maintain leadership in this field and ensure long term economic value for Australia. Establishing a consortium of companies will provide unique opportunities support the growth of transformative new industries here in Australia.“ Michelle Simmons, CEO and Founder of Silicon Quantum Computing.
“The founding of AQA shows our industry is committed to turning Australia’s scientific advantage into commercial success – and that we can work together to solve big problems, from enhancing batteries to improving fertiliser production” says Grace Chung, Head of Google Research Australia.
Media Contact:
Sofia Polak
media@techcouncil.com.au
0434 275 449
