Governor Gavin Newsom‘s office announced the official launch of “Quantum California,” a new statewide initiative intended to align university researchers, industry leaders, national labs, and government partners around a shared strategy for quantum innovation and job creation. The launch event was co-hosted by the Governor’s Office of Business and Economic Development (GO-Biz) and the University of California Office of the President at UC Berkeley.
The initiative formalizes the state’s commitment to advancing quantum technologies, including computing, sensing, and communication. It builds on the recent signing of Assembly Bill 940, which mandates that GO-Biz publish a strategic framework for transforming quantum research into commercial output. This framework, paired with a dedicated $4 million state budget investment, will support a talent pipeline and new research and development.
California is uniquely positioned to lead this sector, leveraging its status as the only state home to both the National Science Foundation (NSF) and Department of Energy (DOE) quantum federal research centers. The ecosystem includes academic centers at UC Berkeley, UCLA, University of Southern California (USC), and Stanford, alongside industry labs like the Google Quantum AI Campus (affiliated with UC Santa Barbara) and the Amazon Web Services Center for Quantum Computing (at Caltech).
UC Berkeley Chancellor Rich Lyons commented that the university is thrilled to be the launchpad for the initiative, which will fuel the exchange of ideas between academia, industry, and government. Dee Dee Myers, Director of GO-Biz, stated that Quantum California is about turning discovery into opportunity by bringing together talent, technology, and creativity.
Read the full announcement here.
November 8, 2025
Leave A Comment