IonQ Forms Landmark Partnership With University of Chicago, Establishing Quantum Research Center

Paul, Weiss advised IonQ, the world’s leading quantum computing company, in its strategic agreement with the University of Chicago to establish the on-campus IonQ Center for Engineering and Science. The partnership marks the first time a production-grade quantum computer and entanglement distribution quantum network has been deployed on a university campus. The groundbreaking initiative will ultimately act as a foundational platform for academic, government and commercial collaboration.

Under the terms of the deal, the center will facilitate a major research initiative to accelerate the development of novel quantum technology by University of Chicago researchers, generating intellectual property that IonQ will use to drive new products, capabilities and long-term commercial growth. IonQ will contribute to the university’s construction of a new building on campus, which will house the center, as well as the university’s Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering and other science and technology research areas. IonQ will also be named a core partner of the Chicago Quantum Exchange (CQE), based at the University of Chicago, contributing to the direction of the multi-institutional research consortium.

The Paul, Weiss team is led by intellectual property partner Jonathan Ashtor and includes counsel Matthew Rosenberg and corporate partners Chelsea Darnell, Timothy Cruickshank, Robert Kindler and Tony Rim.