SURF Announces they will host a new European Quantum Computer

At EGI, we are excited to celebrate an incredible milestone achieved by our valued Council member, SURF. Representing the Netherlands in EGI’s Federation, SURF has announced its bold initiative to host a cutting-edge quantum computer. This development represents a leap forward in research and computational capabilities, offering new opportunities and inspiring innovation within the scientific community.

Quantum computing, known for its ability to solve complex problems at speeds unattainable with classical computers, holds the potential to revolutionise a variety of fields—from cryptography and material science to climate modeling and beyond. 

Celebrating Innovation, Strengthening Collaboration

SURF’s contributions through its members have been integral to EGI’s success, providing resources and expertise that strengthen our HTC resources and the EGI infrastructure security coordination and incident response activities. Its foray into quantum technology showcases its commitment to pushing the boundaries of scientific exploration and aligns with EGI’s mission to support world-class research through advanced computing infrastructures. SURF’s innovation underscores the value of collaborative efforts within the EGI community, where shared resources and expertise drive progress and enable groundbreaking discoveries.

Quantum computing is developing at a fast pace, and it is time to start thinking about its practical applicability. By hosting a quantum computer, SURF is jumping into a new infrastructure challenge that will help stimulate research and education while contributing to the ongoing efforts of making quantum technology a reality” - Ariana Torres-Knoop, Lead Quantum Computing SURF.

We believe that SURF’s advancements will open up exciting new possibilities for the research community and the realisation of a European compute continuum. EGI’s federated infrastructure will continue to play a vital role, offering reliable and powerful computing resources that support diverse scientific projects. This ensures that the research community has access to the tools they need, whether they are working on traditional computing or the forefront of quantum innovations. 

Looking to the Future Together

Within EGI through the SPECTRUM project, High Energy Physics and Radio Astronomy are gearing up for groundbreaking instruments, necessitating infrastructures many times larger than the current capabilities. In this context, the EU-funded SPECTRUM project brings together leading European science organisations and e-infrastructure providers to formulate a Strategic Research, Innovation, and Deployment Agenda (SRIDA) along with a Technical Blueprint for a European computer and data continuum. This collaborative effort is set to create an Exabyte-scale research data federation and compute continuum, fostering data-intensive scientific collaborations across Europe. We believe that SURF’s contributions to quantum computing will be an important milestone to tackle this challenge.

As quantum computing continues to develop, the potential intersections with our existing infrastructures may offer new collaborative opportunities in the years to come. EGI remains committed to fostering innovation and supporting our partners’ successes, and SURF’s achievement is a shining example of how our community is constantly evolving.

“I would like to congratulate SURF on this exciting journey towards the future of quantum computing. We look forward to supporting them as they continue to lead the way in technological advancements and to seeing how their work will inspire and complement the broader research landscape,” says EGI Director Tiziana Ferrari.

Stay Tuned for More Updates

Stay connected with EGI as we continue to bring you news and updates about our partners’ successes and how we are collectively advancing research across Europe and beyond. Our commitment to fostering a collaborative research environment means that together, we are always moving forward, breaking barriers, and empowering the scientific community to tackle the biggest challenges of our time.