UCLA Computer Scientists Jason Cong and Jens Palsberg to Co-Lead 2 NSF Quantum Computing Institutes

Two computer scientists from the UCLA Samueli School of Engineering have been selected as co-principal investigators on separate quantum computing institutes funded by the National Science Foundation’s Quantum Leap Challenge Institutes (QLCI). 

The five-year grants of $37.5 million each will support two research institutes aimed at overcoming fundamental barriers in quantum information science and accelerating the development of quantum technologies for practical applications.

The two institutes are part of eight QLCI awards totaling more than $290 million announced today by the NSF to propel U.S. quantum science in the global race to create powerful quantum technologies. The investment is an expansion of the QLCI program created in 2020 following the passage of the National Quantum Initiative Act in 2018.

Newly Established NSF Institute for Fault-Tolerant Quantum Systems, Architectures and Applications 

The institute for Fault-Tolerant Quantum Systems, Architectures and Applications (FTQSAA) is one of three newly formed institutes in the program led by Harvard University, with UCLA Samueli and MIT serving as co-leads. The multi-institutional research team will focus on developing quantum systems that can reliably perform useful computations despite the errors and noise that disrupt quantum devices. The researchers will integrate fault-tolerant design across quantum hardware, software, algorithms and applications to maximize quantum systems’ ability to solve previously intractable problems in fields ranging from drug and materials discovery to particle physics and cosmology.