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PODCAST

The New Quantum Era - innovation in quantum computing, science and technology

Sebastian Hassinger

Your host, Sebastian Hassinger, interviews brilliant research scientists, software developers, engineers and others actively exploring the possibilities of our new quantum era. We will cover topics in quantum computing, networking and sensing, focusing on hardware, algorithms and general theory. The show aims for accessibility - Sebastian is not a physicist - and we"ll try to provide context for the terminology and glimpses at the fascinating history of this new field as it evolves in real

science physics

All Episodes

37:15

The Quantum Control Stack with Niels Bultink

The New Quantum Era - innovation in quantum... ·

2026/05/11

Why This Episode MattersNiels Bultink earned his PhD at QuTech under Leonardo DiCarlo, where he performed some of the first real-time feedback experiments on solid-state qubits — the foundational primitive behind quantum error correction. He spun Qblox out of TU Delft in 2018, and has grown it to roughly 140 people serving 150+ customers worldwide, mostly on revenue rather than venture capital, before raising a $26M Series A in 2024.This conversation matters now because the goalposts for

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38:13

Hardware-Faithful Digital Twins for Quantum Computing...

The New Quantum Era - innovation in quantum... ·

2026/05/04

Hardware-Faithful Digital Twins for Quantum Computing with Izhar MedalsyIzhar Medalsy is not a career qubit theorist. His path runs from a physical chemistry PhD and an ETH Zurich postdoc in atomic force microscopy and ternary nanoscale logic, through productizing scientific instruments at Bruker, through building one of the fastest resin 3D printers on the market, into co-founding Quantum Elements in 2023 with Daniel Lidar (USC) and Amir Yacoby (Harvard). That arc — nanoscale measurement

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45:16

Are We Computing Quantum in the Wrong Base? with Ivan...

The New Quantum Era - innovation in quantum... ·

2026/04/27

Are We Computing Quantum in the Wrong Base? with Ivan DeutschIvan Deutsch is Distinguished Regents' Professor of Physics and Astronomy at the University of New Mexico and the founding director of CQuIC, the Center for Quantum Information and Control. Along with his longtime collaborator Poul Jessen, Ivan helped lay the theoretical foundations for neutral-atom quantum computing in the 1990s: trapping individual atoms in optical lattices, cooling them to near absolute zero, and shuttling them

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41:13

Quantum Chemistry's Classical Limits with Garnet Chan

The New Quantum Era - innovation in quantum... ·

2026/04/20

Your host, Sebastian Hassinger, is joined on this episode by Garnet Chan, the Bren Professor of Chemistry at Caltech, a member of the National Academy of Sciences, and among the most cited computational chemists in the world (34,000+ Google Scholar citations). Garnet is neither a quantum computing booster nor a dismissive skeptic. He's a theorist who works at the exact boundary between what classical algorithms can and cannot do — and who keeps finding that boundary further out than the

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62:15

Quantum Open Source with Will Zeng and Ziyaad Bhorat

The New Quantum Era - innovation in quantum... ·

2026/04/17

Quantum Open Source with Will Zeng and Ziyaad BhoratIn this special live-streamed discussion, Will Zeng, co-founder of the Unitary Foundation, and Ziyaad Bhorat, VP at the Mozilla Foundation, join host Sebastian Hassinger to unpack their co-authored white paper, The Open Foundation Quantum Technology Needs. The paper argues that open source quantum software is structurally underfunded — too applied for academic grants, too public-good for venture capital — and that philanthropic

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40:07

Simulating Quantum Materials with Arnab Banerjee

The New Quantum Era - innovation in quantum... ·

2026/04/07

SummaryThis episode is for anyone following the quantum utility debate or curious about how quantum computers will actually contribute to scientific discovery. Arnab Banerjee — assistant professor at Purdue, guest scientist at Oak Ridge's Quantum Science Center, and one of the most-cited experimentalists working at the intersection of quantum materials and quantum computing — walks us through his career-spanning journey from growing magnetic crystals to programming qubits.You'll hear how

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37:02

Quantum Advantage Achieved with Dominik Hangleiter

The New Quantum Era - innovation in quantum... ·

2026/04/01

Has quantum advantage actually been achieved — or is the field still arguing over its own milestones? Dominik Hangleiter, one of the leading theorists working on quantum computational advantage, joins the podcast to make the case that it has, explain why so many physicists remain unconvinced, and map the path toward fault-tolerant, verifiable quantum advantage.Why This Episode MattersIf you follow quantum computing and want to cut through the noise around quantum advantage claims, this

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37:29

Scaling Quantum Hardware Like Semiconductors with...

The New Quantum Era - innovation in quantum... ·

2026/03/23

Scaling Quantum Hardware Like Semiconductors with Matthijs RijlaarsdamThe quantum computing industry has been stuck at roughly 100 qubits for years — not because of physics, but because of wiring. Matthijs Rijlaarsdam, co-founder and CEO of QuantWare, explains how his company's 3D vertical chip architecture (VIO) could break through that ceiling to 10,000 qubits by 2028, and why the quantum industry needs to start thinking like the semiconductor industry if it wants to actually deliver on

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40:16

Engineering the Quantum Future with Brian Gaucher

The New Quantum Era - innovation in quantum... ·

2026/03/16

Ever wonder why quantum computing still feels like a "cool science experiment" instead of a deployable technology? After two decades building wireless standards and quantum systems at IBM, Brian Gaucher argues that engineering—not physics—has become the critical bottleneck holding back quantum technologies from real-world impact.Why this episode mattersThis conversation is essential for anyone trying to understand why quantum technologies haven't yet transitioned from laboratory

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48:57

Quantum Engineering with David Reilly and Tom Ohki

The New Quantum Era - innovation in quantum... ·

2026/03/09

Revolutionary Quantum Engineering with David Reilly and Tom OhkiHave you ever wondered what it takes to build computing systems that work at temperatures colder than outer space? David Reilly and Tom Ohki are tackling this exact challenge, leading a "special ops" team of engineers from their unique position at Emergence Quantum—the startup born from Microsoft's Station Q program. They're not just building quantum computers; they're creating the entire infrastructure ecosystem that will make

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39:48

The Illinois Quantum Ecosystem with Harley Johnson

The New Quantum Era - innovation in quantum... ·

2026/03/02

From Steel Mills to Quantum Scale-Up: Inside Illinois's Bold Bet on the Future of ComputingWhat does it take to build the world's largest dedicated quantum technology park — on the site of a former steel mill? Harley Johnson is leading that effort, and the answer involves equal parts materials science, economic development, and a 30-year bet on quantum that's finally paying off.Why This Episode MattersIf you're following the quantum computing industry's path from lab prototypes to

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37:36

Quantum LDPC error correction with Larry Cohen and...

The New Quantum Era - innovation in quantum... ·

2026/02/26

Breaking Down RSA: How QLDPC Codes Cut Quantum Computing Requirements by an Order of MagnitudeWhat if I told you that the number of qubits needed to break RSA encryption just dropped from over a million to around 100,000? That's exactly what researchers at Iceberg Quantum achieved by combining quantum low-density parity-check (QLDPC) error correction with algorithmic optimizations—potentially accelerating quantum cryptography timelines by years.Why this episode mattersThis episode dives

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38:06

Our Quantum Future with Evan Kubes

The New Quantum Era - innovation in quantum... ·

2026/02/23

How a Lawyer and a Listicle Launched One of Quantum's Most Influential Media PlatformsEvan Kubes had no physics degree, no engineering background, and no idea what a qubit was when he stumbled across a press release about AWS investing in quantum. What he did have was experience translating complex industries for mainstream audiences — and within months, he and co-founder Alex Challans had turned a Wix website and a "Top 20 Most Influential People in Quantum" listicle into The Quantum

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42:29

Building a Quantum Ecosystem from Scratch with Martin...

The New Quantum Era - innovation in quantum... ·

2026/02/17

What does it take to build a thriving quantum ecosystem from the ground up? Martin Laforest, physicist-turned-venture-capitalist at Quantacet, reveals how Quebec transformed a 1970s academic bet into a $400M quantum powerhouse—and why the industry's biggest misconception is thinking quantum computing is either a science problem or an engineering problem when it's clearly both.SummaryIn this conversation, Sebastian sits down with Martin Laforest, partner at Quantacet, Canada's quantum-only

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36:35

Quantum consciousness with Joachim Keppler

The New Quantum Era - innovation in quantum... ·

2026/02/09

What if consciousness isn’t generated by the brain, but emerges from its interaction with a ubiquitous quantum field? In this episode, Sebastian Hassinger and theoretical physicist Joachim Keppler explore a zero‑point field model of consciousness that could reshape both neuroscience and quantum theory.SummaryThis conversation is for anyone curious about the “hard problem” of consciousness, quantum brain theories, and the future of quantum biology and AI. Joachim shares his QED‑based

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45:48

Quantum Leadership with Nadya Mason

The New Quantum Era - innovation in quantum... ·

2026/02/02

What happens when a former elite gymnast with “weak math and science” becomes dean of one of the world’s most influential quantum engineering schools? In this episode of *The New Quantum Era*, Sebastian Hassinger talks with Prof. Nadya Mason about quantum 2.0, building a regional quantum ecosystem, and why she sees leadership as a way to serve and build community rather than accumulate power.Summary This conversation is for anyone curious about how quantum materials research, academic

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33:23

Democratizing Quantum Venture Investing with Chris...

The New Quantum Era - innovation in quantum... ·

2026/01/26

Your host, Sebastian Hassinger, talks with Alumni Ventures managing partner Chris Sklarin about how one of the most active US venture firms is building a quantum portfolio while “democratizing” access to VC as an asset class for individual investors. They dig into Alumni Ventures’ co‑investor model, how the firm thinks about quantum hardware, software, and sensing, and why quantum should be viewed as a long‑term platform with near‑term pockets of commercial value. Chris also explains how

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32:19

Regional quantum development with Alejandra Y. Castillo

The New Quantum Era - innovation in quantum... ·

2026/01/19

Alejandra Y. Castillo, former Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Economic Development and now Chancellor Senior Fellow for Economic Development at Purdue University Northwest, joins your host, Sebastian Hassinger, to discuss how quantum technologies can drive inclusive regional economic growth and workforce development. She shares lessons from federal policy, Midwest tech hubs, and cross-state coalitions working to turn quantum from lab research into broad-based opportunity.Themes and key

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63:26

Majorana qubits with Chetan Nayak

The New Quantum Era - innovation in quantum... ·

2026/01/12

In this episode of The New Quantum Era, your host Sebastian Hassinger is joined by Chetan Nayak, Technical Fellow at Microsoft, professor of physics at the University of California Santa Barbara, and driving force behind Microsoft's quantum hardware R&D program. They discuss a modality of qubit that has not been covered on the podcast before, based on Majorana fermonic behaviors, which have the promise of providing topological protection against the errors which are such a challenge to

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29:55

Peaked quantum circuits with Hrant Gharibyan

The New Quantum Era - innovation in quantum... ·

2025/12/12

In this episode of The New Quantum Era, Sebastian talks with Hrant Gharibyan, CEO and co‑founder of BlueQubit, about “peaked circuits” and the challenge of verifying quantum advantage. They unpack Scott Aaronson and Yushuai Zhang’s original peaked‑circuit proposal, BlueQubit’s scalable implementation on real hardware, and a new public challenge that invites the community to attack their construction using the best classical algorithms available. Along the way, they explore how this line of

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112 results

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