The 29th Quantum Information Processing Conference – QIP, this year organized by the University of Latvia (UL), will be held in Riga from 24 to 30 January. QIP is the world’s leading event of the industry, annually bringing together the world’s most distinguished researchers and technology companies for week-long discussions of the latest advances in quantum computing, cryptography, information theory, mathematics, and physics.
“The right to organize the QIP conference in Latvia is the highest recognition to scientists at the University of Latvia, their work in the field of quantum algorithms comprising nearly 20 years has been internationally noticed and appreciated. We have purposefully developed the direction of quantum algorithms in Latvia, creating an international group of researchers who can be proud of the developed methods that are the basis for more than 20% of the quantum algorithms invented by other scientists in the world,” emphasizes UL Rector Prof. Gundars Bērziņš.
Since the initial conference in 1998 in Aarhus, Denmark, QIP has become the largest global quantum research platform, annually bringing together participants from leading academic and industrial organizations around the world. For the first time, the conference will be held in Latvia convening 900 participants from 42 countries, including the United States, Australia, Canada, Denmark, France, Germany, Belgium, Finland, India, Israel, Italy, Japan, South Korea, the Netherlands, Poland, the United Kingdom, Switzerland, Singapore, India, Moldova, Nepal, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates, Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia and others.
“At the national level, by uniting the strongest universities and institutes in Latvia, we have created the Latvian Quantum Initiative to strengthen research cooperation with the colleagues abroad, develop directions of quantum sensors and quantum communication. The QIP conference is a place where scientists from all over the world can meet and discuss their ideas, establish new contacts and advance their research. Therefore, I am delighted that this year we can host this world-class event here in Riga,” says Andris Ambainis, UL tenured professor of computer science, head of the Latvian Quantum Initiative.
The conference will be introduced on 24 and 25 January with a series of tutorials, in which researchers from Germany, France, Italy, and Israel will delve into topics such as quantum algorithms, error correction methods for quantum computers, and testing hypotheses about quantum states.
The conference programme will span five days from January 26 to 30, with more than 140 speakers and more than 440 poster presentations in four parallel sessions. Guest speakers will include Sergio Boixo, Director of Quantum Computing at Google Quantum AI, and John Watrous, Director of Education and Training Institute for Quantum Computing, University of Waterloo. Sergio Boixo will talk about the latest experiments by Google’s quantum group, which show how quantum computers can perform calculations that are practically impossible for classical computers, and about the usefulness of such calculations in chemistry. John Watrous will share his 30 years of experience and insights into the development of quantum education, course design, and the role of education in shaping this field of science.
The QIP conference places a particular focus upon enabling young researchers to attend the conference in order to encourage student interest in the fields of quantum technologies and their involvement in research. Annually, a scholarship fund is created to support the participation of the most purposeful students in the conference. Furthermore, for several years now, a special event for women in quantum science has been taking place within the framework of the conference. This year, it is organized by UL in cooperation with the organization RigaTechGirls, which promotes the involvement of girls and women in information technologies and digital skills.
The conference will be held at the University of Latvia Academic Centre and ATTA Centre, Riga.
The QIP conference is organised by the University of Latvia in collaboration with the Latvian Quantum Initiative. The event is supported by the Ministry of Defence, Google Quantum AI, Mikrotik, Qedma, Amazon Web Services, American Physical Society, IBM, Alice & Bob, QMill, Phasecraft, IQM, Q*Bird, science communication platform researchLatvia of the Ministry of Education and Science of the Republic of Latvia, the organisation RigaTechGirls, as well as the International Association for Quantum Information and the University of Amsterdam.
Further information is available at the website of the conference: qip2026.lu.lv
