Germany Funding Quantum Consortium of Its 10 Biggest Businesses
Germany is hungry to own a hefty stake in the future of the industrialization of quantum and its government is getting behind the effort.
The country’s 10 most powerful companies including BASF, BMW Group, Boehringer Ingelheim, Bosch, Infineon, Merk, Munich Re, SAP, Siemens and Volkswagen are all pitching in their resources and know-how to slingshot Germany’s quantum economy to the very top as part of a new Quantum Technology and Application Consortium (QUTAC).
The group will be funded as part of a new German stimulus package and will work to develop quantum applications for the chemical, automotive, pharmaceutical and insurance sectors.
The elite power-player group aims to create a springboard for the German development of quantum capabilities by creating a system for support and collaboration across industries and the research community.
“Germany and Europe must become leaders in quantum technology and then stay at the top. What we want is technological sovereignty,” Germany’s Federal Minister of Education and Research Anja Karlicczek said about QUTAC. “To achieve this, we must rely on our strengths. These are our top researchers with their excellent ideas on the one hand and our strong industry on the other hand. Both must cooperate in an optimal way. Then we will achieve the best results. We are therefore funding companies and cutting-edge research under the quantum technologies framework programme.”
Digital sovereignty, the idea that nations need to maintain ownership and control of their own data is rapidly becoming an acutechemic policy debate around the world.
First, the group plans to assess where the most viable markets for quantum applications are today, how quantum can improve those industries.
“Germany and Europe need a strong quantum computing ecosystem to be at the cutting edge of technology and remain globally competitive,” Oliver Zipse, Chairman of the Board of Management of BMW AG said. “With QUTAC, we are laying the foundation for a successful ecosystem that will allow us to make the most of the great potential of quantum computing.”
