An Atom Computing worker engaged in work on a pc screen.
CNBC
This story is an element of CNBC’s quarterly Cities of Success series, which explores cities which have transformed into business hubs with an entrepreneurial spirit that has attracted capital, corporations and employees.
Imagine a world where computers solve problems billions of times faster than today’s machines can, ushering in a recent era of scientific discovery.
That is the promise of quantum technology — and a fierce race is underway to unlock its potential. Within the shadow of the Rocky Mountains, the Denver-Boulder region is emerging as a world leader on this revolution.
Atom Computing is predicated within the San Francisco area, but CEO Rob Hays told CNBC in a recent interview why his quantum company selected the town of Boulder for its recent $100 million facility: the region’s thriving ecosystem.
“The longer term looks really shiny for us here. … We have built two of the biggest quantum computers on the planet,” Hays said in CNBC’s primetime special “Cities of Success: Denver & Boulder,” which airs April 11 at 10 p.m. ET. “The proven fact that we have been capable of do this in 18 months is pretty remarkable.”
In Denver, Maybell Quantum, one other key player within the industry, is constructing an excellent refrigerator that chills atoms to extreme temperatures — greater than 100,000 times colder than the coldest a part of Antarctica.
Maybell Quantum CEO Corban Tillemann-Dick (left) and CNBC’s Carl Quintanilla stand in front of an excellent refrigerator that chills atoms to incredibly low temperatures which is crucial for constructing quantum computers.
CNBC
“It’s 10 millikelvin,” said Maybell Quantum CEO Corban Tillemann-Dick. That equates to negative 441.67 degrees Fahrenheit.
Why so cold? The frigid conditions are essential for quantum computers to operate. The supercooled environment helps minimize even the tiniest vibrations that may disrupt a quantum chip’s delicate subatomic calculations.
Promise and potential
Identical to semiconductors fueled powerful computers and networking devices that made today’s complex web possible, Tillemann-Dick said the following big thing may very well be quantum technology.Â
“This technology goes to be as vital to the following 100 years as semiconductors [were to] the web or cellular technology. It’ll transform the whole lot from medicine to defense to agriculture,” he said.
The CEO said he envisions data centers full of rows of quantum computers tackling the world’s most pressing problems.
“There’ll come a time not too far in the long run … you’ll walk into an information center and there can be hundreds of [quantum computers] lined up similar to you will have servers today, working on workloads from everywhere in the world to unravel these critical problems,” he said.
Colorado’s race to turn into a quantum hub
Physicist Richard Feynman is credited with pioneering the thought of quantum computing within the Eighties. It’s come a great distance since then. In response to McKinsey, the 4 industries which can be poised to see the largest boost from quantum computing — automotive, chemicals, financial services and life sciences — are expected to achieve $1.3 trillion in value by 2035.
Helping Colorado within the boom, the Biden-Harris administration recently designated the Denver-Aurora region as considered one of 31 “Tech Hubs” in the USA. This designation is an element of a program to take a position in regions with high potential for growth in key technology sectors.
Leading the charge to solidify Colorado’s position as a quantum leader is Elevate Quantum Colorado, a private-public consortium of greater than 100 organizations including the University of Colorado Boulder and other higher education institutions, state and native governments, federal labs and personal corporations.
“The thought is to create Silicon Valleys where there aren’t Silicon Valleys today against a very powerful technologies of our time,” said Zachary Yerushalmi, Elevate Quantum Colorado’s CEO.Â
Yerushalmi noted that federal designation positions the state to turn into considered one of only a handful of quantum hubs nationwide.
“We competed against 400 applicants across the nation, and we’re fortunate to be chosen as considered one of three,” Yerushalmi explained. “That is where things really get hot … we’re competing for $70 million from the federal government.”
Only a handful of hubs can be chosen to receive the funding — and Yerushalmi says he’s optimistic of their probabilities, expecting a choice later this yr.
Meanwhile, Colorado Gov. Jared Polis, a firm believer in quantum’s potential, is upping the stakes. In February, his administration unveiled plans to take a position an extra $74 million into the quantum industry over five to nine years if Colorado is considered one of the regions chosen to receive federal funding.
“I’m bullish on quantum tech,” Polis told CNBC in a recent interview. “I believe its time has come.”
TUNE IN: The “Cities of Success” special featuring Denver and Boulder will air on CNBC on April 11 at 10 p.m. ET.
Correction: Maybell Quantum is constructing an excellent refrigerator that chills atoms to greater than 100,000 times colder than the coldest a part of Antarctica. An earlier version of this story misstated the metric.
