Catalonia launches plan to become the first quantum power in Europe

BarcelonaAfter three years of being halted due to a lack of funding, the Vall de la Quàntica project will finally be launched, a strategic initiative that aims to position Catalonia at the forefront of quantum technologies in Europe. The Catalan government is finalising an agreement that will be presented in the coming days and which includes an initial investment of 5.5 million euros, which must grow and promises to reach 43 million in five years.

The Quantum Valley, led by the Institute of Photonic Sciences (ICFO), aims to place Catalan research in this field among the top six European nodes. "We have an ecosystem made up of universities, research centres and companies that is key to placing Catalonia at the forefront of the second quantum revolution," stressed the president of the Catalan government, Salvador Illa, at an event this Friday at the Palau de la Generalitat, where he reiterated that it is a "strategic" axis of the Government.

The announcement comes as part of a day dedicated to the International Year of Quantum Science and Technology, which brings together leading experts in the field, in the year that marks the centenary of his birth. The event was attended by the Regional Minister for Research and Universities, Núria Montserrat; the Secretary of State for Science and Innovation, Juan Cruz Cigudosa; and the Fourth Deputy Mayor for the Department of Economy, Finance and Economic Development of Barcelona City Council, Jordi Valls, among others.

"If over the past 25 years the research system designed by Andreu Mas-Colell has fostered the scientific development of the country, in the next decade, thanks to major projects like this one, we will also begin to have a significant economic and social impact, beyond science," says Lluís Torner, professor at the UPC, director of the UPC and founding director of the UPC.

Inspired by the Munich Quantum Valley model – pioneers and leaders in quantum on a global scale – the initiative had been approved in a government agreement in March 2022 under the name of the Mediterranean Quantum Valley of Science and Quantum Technologies. However, the lack of funding had left it at a standstill until now.

With the new boost, Catalonia will join the European countries and regions that are betting on quantum technologies, a market that is estimated to multiply its size by 10 over the next decade, with an increase of 36.9% annually until 2030, when it would reach 20.

Specifically, the Catalan initiative will create a scientific, technological and business cluster that will include the entire Catalan ecosystem. Universities, research centres, spin-offs and start-ups, large telecommunications companies, administrations willing to implement quantum technologies and infrastructures such as the Barcelona Supercomputing Center (BSC-CNS), which already houses a prototype of a quantum computer, the first in Spain and one of the few in Europe with 100% European technology.

The objective will be, on the one hand, to generate knowledge and train and attract talent, and on the other, to transfer the knowledge generated in this field to industrial applications, both for products and services based on these disruptive technologies, in order to have a socioeconomic impact in the medium term.

The initiative will be scientifically and technically coordinated by the ICFO, which has commissioned Torner to take charge, and will be structured around several axes. To begin with, one will be dedicated to promoting infrastructures and, specifically, quantum computers. Secondly, another backbone will be the quantum communications link in the metropolitan area of ​​Barcelona, ​​​​which is also being developed by the Institute of Photonic Sciences, to serve institutions and companies throughout this urban area.

Research will be another of the fundamental axes of the program and all the universities that carry out quantum technologies are involved, that is, the Autonomous University of Bellaterra, the University of Barcelona and the Polytechnic University of Catalonia. There will also be a talent program, called Catalonia Quantum Academy, which is already in operation, which seeks to generate a lot of criticism through industrial masters and doctorates; and, finally, a last axis will be linked to the promotion and support of spin-offs and Start-ups, as well as dissemination and establishment of international alliances.

At the event dedicated to commemorating the centenary of quantum, the Minister for Research and Universities, Núria Montserrat, highlighted that the deployment of the Quantum Valley will generate "great opportunities for the creation of new companies, such as in quantum sensors for medicine or in repeaters for long-distance quantum links." The Minister has framed the initiative within the "large transformative projects" aligned with the Draghi report; with the strategy called "Compass" [in Catalan "Brújula"], recently announced by the European Commission; and with the 'Catalunya Lidera' program, recently announced by President Illa, which aims to boost the Catalan R&D&I system and the competitiveness of our country.

"Innovation is not a luxury, but a necessity, and quantum technology is one of the areas in which we have the most potential to lead on an international scale," Montserrat said.

On the brink of a second revolution

A century ago, the basic principles of quantum mechanics were formulated, which allowed us to understand how matter works on a microscopic scale. Understanding and being able to exploit the rules that predict the behaviour of light and the most elementary particles has allowed technological advances in very diverse fields, such as electronics: mobile phones, tablets and flat screens are possible thanks to quantum mechanics. This is what is known as the first quantum revolution, and now we are on the threshold of the second, in which quantum science and technologies will lead to further advances. These include the development of new vaccines and medicines, solar cells and low-emission LED light sources that are more energy efficient and affordable, better imaging and medical diagnostic technologies, and the development of new materials that drive technological innovation, among others.

"Quantum technologies will generate disruptive advances in the coming years and opportunities, economic growth and high value-added employment. They will improve people's lives in the near future, and we in Catalonia will participate in this revolution," says Torner.

Illa wanted to highlight the power of Catalonia in the entire knowledge and research ecosystem, in which 33,500 researchers work. The Government, he said, will invest 2,000 million euros to promote and structure this Catalan ecosystem with the aim of "consolidating Catalonia's leadership in R&D&i in Spain and being a reference point in Europe."