The VC firm, which already has centres in Canada, Switzerland and Japan, is now setting up operations in the Asian city-state and working to develop ideas in fields such as quantum computing, AI, and more.
QAI Ventures,
which invests in advanced computing technologies, including
quantum computing, has launched operations in Singapore.
The venture capital firm, which has a portfolio of 27 companies
across Europe and North America, will use the Asian city-state as
its APAC headquarters, it said in a statement yesterday. The
Singapore office is led by Thomas Landis, managing director of
QAI Ventures in Singapore.
QAI Ventures is partnering with Enterprise Singapore
(EnterpriseSG) as part of the move.
The partnership is designed to reinforce Singapore’s efforts in
research, development of intellectual property and the
jurisdiction’s government-backed National Quantum Strategy,
supported by close to S$300 million (about $222 million) in
funding.
The firm concentrates on “quantum AI”, which is the intersection
of quantum computing and AI. According to one definition,
quantum computing is a “rapidly-emerging technology that
harnesses the laws of quantum mechanics to solve problems too
complex for classical computers”. (See a related article
here.)
QAI Ventures will launch two flagship initiatives under the
partnership with EnterpriseSG. These include a five-month
QuantumAI Accelerator Program, designed to scout and scale global
startups; and a Venture Building Program, focused on turning
research into market-ready solutions.
Besides its new Singapore office, QAI Ventures has offices in
Switzerland, Canada and Japan.
The group will host a “GenQ Quantum Hackathon” from 24 to 26
October, an event to scout for talent for its Accelerator Program
and Venture Building.
For early-stage entrepreneurs, QAI Ventures runs accelerator
programmes in Basel and Calgary.
