New York University (NYU) and the city of New York are working together to build quantum infrastructure in the city, including a quantum fabrication facility (QFab) at NYU with equipment to support more than 100 companies and training for high school and college students.
The university is investing $255 million to construct and operate the facility for 10 years, according to a news release from Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s office. On the city’s part, a $29.2 million investment in the facility will give them three seats on the QFab board and a 15 percent stake in new technologies coming out of the facility.
According to the news release, the 23,000-square-foot facility is projected to open in 2030, housing equipment to manufacture and test quantum chips. It will offer training to students at NYU, the City University of New York (CUNY) and the city’s public high schools through internships, boot camps, virtual reality learning and new CUNY associate degree and certificate programs.
Quantum is gaining attention from higher education institutions and governments as experts predict it will be a significant contributor to the economy in the future. McKinsey experts, for example, said in an April report that quantum companies generated more than $1 billion in revenue last year, a number that may grow in years to come. According to the report, quantum could create up to $2.7 trillion of economic value globally by 2035.
“Right now, at subatomic levels that we can only glimpse, new technologies are being developed that will transform how we fight disease, store energy and exchange information,” Mamdani said in a public statement. “We want those technologies, investments and jobs to be created here in New York City — and we want New Yorkers to have a say and a share in their success. With this new quantum lab, we are bringing that vision to life.”
QFab will also provide opportunities for quantum companies to grow through an incubator program expected to include 50 established companies and 50 startups.
The facility will build on NYU’s recent investments in quantum research. Last year, the university hired six new faculty with quantum expertise, committed to opening a quantum institute and created a master’s degree pathway in quantum technologies.
“When the public invests in a new technology at the start, the public should share in the success,” Julie Su, deputy mayor for economic justice, said in a public statement.