Why Chicago is pushing its chips all in on quantum

Chicago, a city long known as a hub for B2B software, suddenly finds itself at the forefront of the quantum computing race. 

Buoyed by moves from Gov. JB Pritzker, a former venture capitalist and potential 2028 presidential candidate, Chicago is placing its chips on quantum chips — believing the complex and potentially transformative technology can elevate the city’s economy. 

The State of Illinois is investing $500 million in quantum and microelectronics, including the creation of the Illinois Quantum & Microelectronics Park on the South Side of Chicago. IBM is building a quantum computer there, and providing resources to local quantum startups. The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency signed up as a tenant. PsiQuantum, a quantum startup, is aiming to build the nation's first utility-scale quantum computer with an ambitious plan to bring it online by 2028. 

Chicago is also home to Duality, the first quantum computing startup accelerator in the country, and Illinois houses four of the top 10 federally funded quantum research centers in the U.S. 

Local tech boosters and politicians believe Chicago is poised to be a leading hub for quantum innovation, thanks in part to a $200 million cryofacility at the park, a needed piece of quantum infrastructure. Having such a plant, which is effectively a giant refrigeration system, could help attract companies, cash and quantum talent to Chicago in droves. 

But quantum computing still remains a moonshot. There are no guarantees quantum’s promise of super-fast computing will come to fruition, and even if it does, it isn’t exactly around the corner. 

McKinsey estimates that there will be some 5,000 quantum computers operational by 2030, but the hardware and software required to handle the most complex problems won’t be ready until 2035 or later. Even with a head start in quantum infrastructure, Chicago may not see its investment pay off for more than a decade. 

Does that keep Chicago from doubling down on more near-term opportunities, such as artificial intelligence? Will funneling resources to unproven technology prevent the city from achieving its goal of becoming a tier-1 tech hub? 

“Coming in as governor in 2019, I knew that quantum was on the verge,” Pritzker recently told the Wall Street Journal, adding “quantum is an area where there was still an opportunity to be the leader.”  

How corporations can prepare now for a quantum future 

If Chicago and the state of Illinois are indeed poised to be first-movers in quantum, corporations should start thinking now about its impacts to their industries, MIT researchers say. Some companies already are expecting to invest more than $15 million annually on quantum computing, MIT writes. And companies in industries that process very large datasets are set to derive the biggest advantages.

Industries like healthcare, logistics and finance, all major sectors of Chicago’s economy, could be in line for major benefits from quantum. If Chicago is able to provide some of the first functioning quantum computers, the city’s business and tech ecosystems could reap rewards. 

Having physical proximity to a quantum computer and its surrounding ecosystem provides a significant, tangible benefit to a corporation, but not in the way you might think. The benefit isn't about being able to physically plug a cable into a machine; quantum computers are already designed to be accessed remotely via the cloud. Instead, the benefits of physical proximity are about ecosystem, talent, and collaboration.

Chicago’s emergence as a quantum hub means corporations can actively participate in the local ecosystem. Collaborating directly with scientists and engineers from universities and national labs, partnering and investing in quantum startups that are naturally attracted to a quantum hub, and sharing resources that corporations can leverage without having to build their own are all benefits to being part of a quantum ecosystem. 

In addition, one of the biggest challenges for corporations in the quantum space is finding and retaining skilled talent. A quantum hub is a magnet for top talent, from Ph.D. students to experienced engineers and physicists.

While the quantum computer itself might be physically located in one place, its value is in the network of people, ideas, and infrastructure that surround it. For a Chicago corporation, being in the city's quantum hub means being at the center of this network, which provides a tangible and substantial competitive advantage.   

For corporations to remain competitive and innovative, connecting to an ecosystem of emerging ventures can help them stay on the cutting edge of their industry. That’s where TechNexus Venture Collaborative shines — creating collaborative relationships between large corporations and ambitious upstarts. Over the last decade we’ve helped a dozen corporations invest in 200 startups, creating new products, insights and innovations by combining the strength of Fortune 500 corporations with the speed of startups. 

Chicago’s quantum future may be uncertain, but local leaders are placing big bets on the new technology. Corporations should act now to gain a competitive advantage and tap into this emerging quantum ecosystem. 

‍Jim Dallke is Director of Communications at TechNexus Venture Collaborative in Chicago. A journalist for more than 15 years, Jim joined TechNexus from the American City Business Journals where he was National Editor of American Inno.