April 9, 2026
Since 2022, students interested in Quantum Information Science and Engineering (QISE) have come together through the Quantum Science and Information seminar course (EE 500 Q) to learn from leading engineers and researchers in the field. Speakers from IonQ, IBM Quantum, Microsoft Quantum, and other institutions have shared insights into cutting-edge research, emerging technologies, and diverse career paths.
A student from Winter 2026 seminar reflected, “My favorite part of the seminar was hearing the speaker from IonQ share his personal experience. I really enjoyed learning about his career path, how he entered the field, and how his work connects research with real-world industry applications. I think this kind of personal and practical perspective was very inspiring.”
This seminar, offered every winter quarter, is a requirement for the Graduate Certificate in QISE and is also open to students interested in exploring the field. New this year, the seminar was opened to the public, bringing visitors from Seattle’s broader quantum-curious community to campus.
Another participant shared, “[The seminar] broadened my view of quantum information science and engineering by showing me that the field is not only theoretically interesting, but also closely connected to real research and industry applications. The seminar helped me better understand the variety of topics in the field, as well as the different academic and career paths people can take. Overall, it made the subject feel more exciting, practical, and interdisciplinary.”
Thank you to this year’s invited speakers, whose insights and experiences made this year’s seminar especially impactful:
Emma Schmidgall, Senior Hardware Engineer, Microsoft Quantum
Yaodong Li, Professor, Mechanical Engineering, Stanford University
Tristan Shi, Professor, Chemistry, UW
William Kretschmer, Professor, Computer Science, University of Texas at Austin
Michael Beverland, Researcher, IBM Quantum
Daniel Higginbottom, Professor, Simon Fraser University & Director, Photonic Inc.
Evan Reed, Atomic Physicist, IonQ
Maxwell Parsons, Professor, Electrical & Computer Engineering, UW
Bo Peng, Computational Scientist, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory