The Eurecat Congress brought together leading experts and stakeholders in artificial intelligence and quantum computing to discuss how these disruptive technologies will usher in a “new digital era” as the event’s panel discussion was entitled. They looked at the impact these technologies may have on society, businesses and public institutions and how they can be made to fit sustainability, security and ethical requirements.
These innovations are bringing about “a shift in the way society interacts with technology, which is why we need to be able to come up with strategic solutions that help all stakeholders get to grips with this new paradigm,” argued Xavier Domingo, Director of Eurecat’s Applied Artificial Intelligence Unit, who led the session.
“Although we can already benefit from some improvements made possible by artificial intelligence technologies, quantum technologies are still at a less advanced stage, still in the research phase, yet they are making strong progress and are expected to yield disruptive results in the medium term.”
The speakers shared use cases involving technologies such as artificial intelligence across various sectors, and looked to the future to understand how quantum computing will complement artificial intelligence models or, in some cases, enable them to be much more efficient. Examples of this include solving optimisation problems and simulating advanced materials.
“The first applications we see for quantum technology will most likely be in the scientific field,” commented Antonio Acín, ICREA research professor and head of the Quantum Information Theory Group at the Institute of Photonic Sciences (ICFO). “There are lots of problems we cannot solve today and which we believe will be solved using a quantum supercomputer.
“Quantum particles can be applied to a range of elements enabling us to build quantum devices or a quantum internet among many other applications which are yet to be identified as this technology develops.”
At the panel discussion, the experts agreed that quantum technology is still pretty raw but public and private investment suggests it will gradually come into its own in the medium term. This is a big reason why getting small and medium-sized enterprises and the public sector ready was seen as crucial.
“Companies are not going to have a quantum computer in the immediate future, but it would be a good idea for them to start exploring this technology since when it is rolled out, it will happen overnight and entail a huge competitive advantage,” noted Eva Martín Fierro, Director of Innovation at Qilimanjaro Quantum Tech.
The advent of quantum computing will be a disruptive revolution and “we have got to get ready on several levels: developing technology and helping businesses embrace it, engaging the ecosystem (universities, technology centres, etc.) and powering the start-up ecosystem,” pointed out Almudena Justo Martínez, Director of the International Quantum Centre at Fujitsu’s FSAS Technologies.
In artificial intelligence, Demetri Rico, director of the Centre for Telecommunications and Information Technology (CTTI), said that “the public fibre network connecting 6,000 Catalan government offices will have 19 nodes with quantum encryption by 2027.” In his view, “we should not stop at process automation; companies must seize the opportunity to do things differently not only to be more efficient but to truly generate change in innovation” in a growing sector which is expected to reach a new peak in 2031 with 1.2 billion users of artificial intelligence tools.
The conversation about future challenges unpacked the need to train talent for new digital roles, build tech sovereignty through strategic partnerships and shape a European tech policy which makes it possible to move in this direction and lead the transformation. The shared message was that the next decade will be crucial and we need to act now to make sure the tech transition is responsible, ethical and collaborative.
Eurecat has reiterated its commitment with a new strategic plan which includes these research and innovation areas such as its involvement in the Cervera ARQA Network, which is making significant progress in researching and developing quantum applications for business seeking to “anticipate changes and bridge the gap between knowledge, business and society,” commented Xavier Domingo.
