Tech leader Niccolo de Masi delivers a quantum leap at Cambridge
Thanks to Niccolo de Masi (Clare 1998) and his visionary idea, Cambridge has recently launched a groundbreaking project.
The future is quantum. We're only debating which year this happens.
Niccolo de Masi
The project teams the Cavendish Laboratory with two quantum technology partners, to form the Quantum Technologies Accelerated Alignment Initiative. It is designed to create quantum applications, pushing science and Cambridge to next level technology leadership.
Mr. de Masi traces a throughline from his professional achievements, which reflect a rare combination of deep physics expertise and commercial acumen, to his Cambridge education where he earned his BA and MSci physics degrees with top honors. Before the age of 30, he had led two publicly traded companies. Now, in his mid-forties, de Masi is at the helm of leading quantum technology company IonQ, which IPO’d on the NYSE under the ticker IONQ in 2021.
"There’s no piece of modern-day physics that doesn't run through the Cavendish Lab,” said de Masi. "I remember reading research by IonQ’s founder on building the world’s first quantum logic gate as an undergraduate student. It was a big deal; if you were a physics undergrad at this time, you heard about this paper and about the potential for quantum computing," he added.
Today as Chairman and CEO of the company, de Masi has been instrumental in guiding IonQ to new levels of success.
"IonQ is the biggest quantum company in history by every measure," noted de Masi.
His first-hand knowledge of Cambridge’s intellectual firepower and his industry expertise led de Masi to envision the project. It matches the Cavendish Laboratory at Cambridge with IonQ technology partner FormationQ to create the Quantum Technologies Accelerated Alignment Initiative, which is designed to translate cutting-edge quantum research into practical, real-world applications.
In February, a generous gift of £1,675,000 to Cambridge in America from FormationQ helped realize de Masi’s vision. FormationQ recommended that its financial donation, in addition to its gift of IonQ-informed computing resources, be leveraged to support Cavendish’s launch of the Quantum Technologies Accelerated Alignment Initiative.
This initiative, enabled by IonQ’s advanced quantum systems, is a fantastic step in this direction and will help turn our quantum research into practical solutions by bringing the community together.
“Bringing [this gift] to an applied research environment at the University of Cambridge creates something powerful,” said FormationQ founder and CEO Nada Hosking. “a pathway from frontier science to real-world deployment, while helping develop the talent needed to carry these technologies forward.”
“The future is quantum. We're only debating which year this happens,” said de Masi.
Nobody has a pre-existing lead over Cambridge in quantum applications. I spend a lot of time recruiting for people who understand how to build quantum algorithms. People will fight over this talent pool in the coming years, it's only a question of when, not if.
Contact
To find out more, or to discuss ways to support physical sciences at Cambridge, please contact:
To find out more about making a tax-efficient gift to Cambridge from the United States of America, please contact:
This article is part of
Related stories
Philanthropic giving is at the heart of the success of the Collegiate University, enabling us to make discoveries that change the world and to ensure that our students receive an unrivalled education. Cambridge owes its world-leading excellence in research and teaching to the generosity of its supporters. Our history is synonymous with a history of far-sighted benefaction, and the same is as true today as it has ever been.
