Israeli quantum company Quantum X Labs, listed on Nasdaq (QXL), announced that Prof. Daniel Freedman has joined as senior quantum scientist. Freedman will be responsible for bridging AI and the quantum technologies the company is developing, and will help lead its research strategy.
Two decades in Big Tech research labs
Freedman holds a PhD in engineering sciences and a master's degree in economics from Harvard University, and a bachelor's degree in physics from Princeton University. In his most recent roles he was a senior research scientist at Genesis Molecular AI and head of fundamental research in the science group of Verily, Alphabet's life sciences company. Before that he was a research scientist at Google Research, a principal researcher at Microsoft Research, a research scientist at IBM Research and a senior research scientist at HP Labs. Alongside that he spent about a decade in academia in the US and Israel, winning, among other honors, an NSF CAREER award and a Fulbright fellowship.
What he will do
Freedman's current research covers the use of AI to solve problems in quantum physics, quantum chemistry and partial differential equations, as well as AI at the atomic and molecular level. According to the company, he will work on moving its quantum technologies toward real-world use at scale.
Quantum X Labs CEO Yaki Berns said very few people in Israel can bridge AI and quantum physics, and that Freedman's arrival also shows Israel can lead in the quantum era "if it knows how to attract the right minds". Prof. Nir Sharon, co-founder and CTO, said Freedman's expertise will support the company's long-term research and technology strategy.
Freedman said he is joining "exactly at the stage where the company is moving from science to real-world applications", calling the convergence of AI with quantum physics, chemistry and mathematical modelling "a fascinating frontier".
