QuantrolOx Opens First U.S. Office at UC Berkeley

QuantrolOx, a qubit control software company spun out of the University of Oxford, has established its first U.S. office at UC Berkeley’s Roger Herst Quantum Nexus. This expansion links to a collaborative working relationship with physicist Irfan Siddiqi’s lab on campus.

Details of the Partnership

Indeed, QuantrolOx develops software designed to automate the tuning of qubits, the delicate components of quantum processors. Its flagship product, Quantum EDGE, facilitates characterization, calibration, and control across various hardware types. The company claims its software can reduce experiment times from days to seconds and streamline complex tasks like randomized benchmarking.

The new office serves as a base for QuantrolOx, not a facility for building or operating quantum computers. The company describes it as a center for U.S. market development and research collaboration, supporting its expansion across North America. QuantrolOx is partnering with Siddiqi’s Quantum Nanoelectronics Laboratory, which focuses on evaluating emerging tools and training researchers. The disclosed elements of this arrangement are an office lease and a partnership; details regarding contract value, headcount, or hardware commitments were not provided.

Vishal Chatrath, co-founder and CEO of QuantrolOx, emphasized that the move addresses a shortage of physicists capable of manually tuning qubits, linking this to the significant investment now entering the quantum sector.

“No physicists want to waste time tuning qubits, they want to use them. (…) In any case, there aren’t enough physicists qualified to tune all the qubits this industry is about to build, and with $12.6 billion pouring into quantum technologies last year alone, that shortage is about to get a lot more expensive to ignore.”

The $12.6 billion figure was cited by Chatrath without a source in the release.

The Berkeley Context

The Roger Herst Quantum Nexus, established in 2025, functions as an incubator for California’s quantum community. Located a block from campus, it offers over 6,000 square feet of office and meeting space. Claire Cramer, executive director of Berkeley Quantum, described the arrangement as a foundational step, connecting it to the state’s Quantum California initiative. These are promotional characterizations from individuals involved in the project.

Siddiqi chairs Berkeley’s physics department and directs the Quantum Nanoelectronics Laboratory. Berkeley’s contributions to superconducting-qubit research date back to experiments recognized by the 2025 Nobel Prize in Physics. Last month, the U.S. National Science Foundation renewed funding for a quantum research institute led by the university.

Currently, the concrete news involves an office lease and a designated lab partner; the remainder represents future intentions.