In celebration of the 2025 International Year of Quantum Science and Technology, the Open Quantum Institute (OQI) at CERN and the University of Geneva are co-organizing the first Quantum Materials Hackathon, which will be hosted at CERN IdeaSquare from July 11 to 13, 2025.

This hackathon will explore how quantum computing could be utilised to design novel quantum materials and how these materials can contribute towards the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, aligning with OQI’s overall mission. To achieve this, hackathon participants will be tasked with creating a practical application document, detailing how they would approach developing a quantum algorithm to design such a material. They will then begin to develop an algorithm with the potential to be refined further beyond the hackathon.

The event aims at 1) Upskilling/educating new talent in the field of quantum computing/materials. 2) Connecting academic and industrial quantum communities with each other and with new talent. 3) Elaborating on a roadmap for applications of quantum materials to inform future research projects across academia/industry.