Helmut Katzgraber (55North): Why materials simulation beats optimization for near-term quantum

Yuval Boger interviews Helmut Katzgraber, general partner at 55North and former quantum leader at AWS. They discuss Helmut’s view that the most promising near- to mid-term quantum applications are in quantum simulation for materials, chemicals, and pharma, rather than optimization. They also explore European competitiveness, venture opportunities across the quantum stack, cloud and on-prem deployment models, and the workforce and product skills needed to turn quantum ideas into successful companies. Yuval: Hello, Helmut, and thank you for joining me today. Helmut: Hi, Yuval. Nice talking to you again. Yuval: So who are you and what do you do? Helmut: My name is Helmut Katzgraber. I have had several different roles in the past, and now I’m general partner at 55North, which is a VC fund focused on quantum technologies out of Denmark and to the world. Yuval: And I realized that I interviewed you two years ago when you were at AWS, and I guess I missed an interview when you were a professor at the University of Texas, right? Helmut: Yeah, Texas A&M, but let’s not talk about that. That’s long in the past. Long in the past. Yuval: So now that you’re no longer at AWS, what can…