FormationQ today announced the launch of a new applied quantum program in collaboration with the Cavendish Laboratoryat the University of Cambridge.
Powered by IonQ and its trapped-ion quantum systems with all-to-all connectivity, the program will translate cutting-edge quantum research into practical, real-world applications while building an institutional ecosystem for long-term adoption.
The collaboration brings together the Cavendish Laboratory’s scientific leadership and FormationQ’s institutional and operational capabilities.
The Cavendish Laboratory provides the scientific foundation, while FormationQ serves as the enabling platform and long-term operator, building the institutional pathways, governance, and continuity required to translate research into sustained real-world deployment.
The program will leverage IonQ’s quantum technologies spanning computing, networking, sensing, and security systems. IonQ’s platforms provide participating researchers and teams with access to high-fidelity, scalable quantum hardware, enabling applied experimentation and system development that builds on laboratory demonstrations.
Quantum technologies are increasingly recognized as critical to science, security, medicine, and global systems. Yet despite rapid advances in research, adoption remains constrained by gaps in institutional readiness, business model innovation, workforce capability, and coordination across the broader quantum landscape.
This partnership is intended to address those challenges by focusing on building the connective tissue—programmatic and organizational—that allows quantum technologies to move from laboratory discovery into credible, sustained use to address grand societal challenges.
Mete Atatüre, head of the Cavendish Laboratory,said that progress in quantum technologies requires strong collaborations and a constant dialogue between industry and academic research.
“This initiative, enabled by IonQ’s advanced quantum systems, is a fantastic step in this direction and will help turn our quantum research into practical solutions by bringing the community together,” he added.
Nada Hosking,founder and CEO of FormationQ, said that quantum’s bottleneck isn’t science—it is the ecosystem.
“Adoption demands scalable talent pipelines, interoperable institutions, and shared stewardship for long-term deployment,” Hosking said.
The partnership will launch the Quantum Technologies Accelerated Alignment Initiative, a two-year applied program focused on translating quantum research into real-world solutions through structured application development and institutional integration, while strengthening coordination across the quantum ecosystem.
The initiative will concentrate on three areas: enabling reliable use of quantum computing systems beyond the laboratory, building and testing connected quantum technologies for communications and sensing, and preparing industry and society to engage with emerging quantum capabilities.
Each area will be led by an academic expert and supported by interdisciplinary research teams, pairing clearly defined challenges with open, collaborative project development to ensure alignment with real-world needs, while contributing to economic growth and societal wellbeing in a responsible manner.
By combining the Cavendish Laboratory’s depth of scientific leadership and the expertise across departments of the University of Cambridge with FormationQ’s operational and institutional approach, the partnership aims to support long-term impact across research translation, workforce readiness, and applied deployment.
