Quantum World Congress 2025 In Review
As the global quantum ecosystem gathered during the International Year of Quantum, QWC 2025 delivered three days of breakthroughs, bold leadership, and real momentum across science, industry, policy, and investment. From record-setting technologies to global policy coordination, the conversations didn’t just explore the future—they helped shape it.
BY THE NUMBERS2025 Wasn’t just another conference — it was a milestone
In the International Year of Quantum, QWC 2025 marked a defining checkpoint for the field. The scale of participation—from global policymakers and national labs to founders and investors—signaled how far quantum has come and how urgently the world is investing in what comes next. These numbers reflect more than attendance; they represent a growing alignment around quantum’s role in shaping future industries, economies, and security.
#QWC2025 In Numbers
2,000+
Attendees
30+
Countries Represented
33
U.S. States Represented
500+
Unique Organizations
300+
Speakers
Researchers, executives, policymakers, investors, builders, and quantum leaders from around the world.
11
National Quantum Updates
Perspectives and progress reports from quantum ecosystems around the world.
FEATURED KEYNOTESMainstage Moments That Made Waves
From headline-making announcements to thought leadership that shaped the global conversation, QWC 2025 keynotes delivered moments that extended far beyond the room. Here are a few of our favorites.
INTERNATIONAL REPRESENTATIONWhere The World Gathers
Quantum World Congress 2025 was global by design and by impact. Delegations from 30+ countries gathered to share priorities, align strategies, and build partnerships shaping the future of quantum. With 11 national quantum updates from around the world, QWC offered a rare, side-by-side view of how governments are investing, coordinating, and competing—turning national ambition into global momentum.
Argentina
Australia
Austria
Brazil
Canada
Chile
Costa Rica
Denmark
Estonia
European Union
Finland
France
Germany
India
Israel
Italy
Japan
The Netherlands
New Zealand
Nigeria
Norway
Poland
Saudi Arabia
Singapore
South Korea
Spain
Sweden
Switzerland
United Kingdom
United States
2025 SPONSORSPowered by the Ecosystem
Quantum World Congress 2025 was made possible by an extraordinary coalition of sponsors and partners spanning industry, government, academia, and investment. Their support reflected more than sponsorship—it signaled confidence in quantum’s commercial readiness and a shared commitment to accelerating real-world impact, bringing together global technology leaders, emerging quantum companies, research institutions, and ecosystem builders to shape a program where breakthroughs met buyers, policy met practice, and innovation moved closer to deployment.
2025 SPEAKERSThe Voices Driving Quantum Forward
The 2025 program featured one of the most comprehensive and globally representative speaker lineups in Quantum World Congress history. Across mainstage keynotes, technical sessions, policy forums, and industry deep dives, leaders from companies, startups, governments, national labs, universities, and investment firms brought clarity, candor, and hard-earned insight into where quantum stands—and where it’s headed next—sharing lessons from the front lines on scaling hardware, securing systems, building talent pipelines, aligning international strategy, and translating quantum capability into mission-ready solutions. Explore the representative list below.
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![Black and white photo of a smiling man in a black shirt with a colorful purple and blue gradient background.]()
Zulfi Alam
Corporate Vice President
Microsoft Quantum
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![Black and white portrait of a smiling woman with long hair, wearing a collared shirt, against a blue and purple gradient background.]()
Petra Andren
CEO
Quantum Australia
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Dr. Seung-Wook Baek
Director, Division of Quantum Technology
National Research Foundation of Korea
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![Black and white portrait of a smiling man with glasses, wearing a striped shirt, with a gradient background from blue to pink.]()
Dr. Jonathan Bagger
CEO
American Physical Society
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Naftali Bennett
Former Israeli Prime Minister
Board Member, Quantum Source
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![A black-and-white portrait of a smiling man wearing glasses, a dark suit, and a patterned tie with diagrams, set against a gradient background transitioning from blue to purple.]()
Dr. David Berkowitz
Assistant Director for Mathematical and Physical Sciences
National Science Foundation
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![Black and white portrait of a smiling man with short dark hair, wearing a light-colored collared shirt, against a colorful gradient background.]()
Dr. Adam Black
Section Head, Quantum Optics
U.S. Naval Research Laboratory
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![Black and white portrait of a smiling man with glasses, a beard, wearing a button-up shirt, set against a colorful pink and yellow gradient background.]()
Dr. Steve Brierley
Founder & CEO
Riverlane
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![Dr. Gretchen Campbell]()
Dr. Gretchen Campbell
Associate Vice President for Quantum Research and Education
University of Maryland
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![Black-and-white photo of a smiling woman with dark, shoulder-length hair, wearing a blazer and a patterned scarf, against a gradient blue to pink background.]()
Ana Maria Cetto
Research Professor, Institute of Physics
Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México
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Martin Charbonneau
Head of Quantum-Safe Networks
Nokia
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Dr. Charles Day
Senior Editor
Physics Magazine
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Niccolo de Masi
Chairman & CEO
IonQ
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![Donna Dodson]()
Donna Dodson
Cybersecurity Technologist and Senior Strategic Advisor
EvolutionQ
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Dr. Marcus Doherty
Co-Founder & Chief Scientific Officer
Quantum Brilliance
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Dr. JD Dulny
Vice President and Head of Quantum Information Sciences
Booz Allen
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Preston Dunlap
Founder and CEO
Arkenstone Ventures
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Dr. Andrew Dzurak
CEO & Founder
Diraq
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![A black-and-white portrait of a woman with shoulder-length hair, smiling, against a gradient orange background.]()
Kinsey Fabrizio
President
Consumer Technology Association
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Dr. Jake Farinholt
Senior Quantum Physicist
Booz Allen
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![Black and white portrait of a woman with shoulder-length hair smiling, with a purple and orange gradient background.]()
Elana Fine
Chair of the Board
Montgomery County Economic Development Corporation
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![Black and white portrait of a man with short, wavy hair and a serious expression, wearing a collared shirt, set against a gradient purple and blue background.]()
Dr. Jay Gambetta
IBM Fellow and VP
IBM Quantum
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![Dr. Erwin Gianchandani]()
Dr. Erwin Gianchandani
Assistant Director for Technology, Innovation and Partnerships
National Science Foundation
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![Black and white portrait of a young man in a suit, tie, and checkered shirt, smiling, with a gradient background transitioning from blue to purple.]()
Dr. Joseph Hagmann
Quantum Physicist
MITRE
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![Dr. Michael Hayduk]()
Dr. Michael Hayduk
Deputy Director
Air Force Research Lab
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Rajeeb Hazra
President & CEO
Quantinuum
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![Black and white portrait of a woman with shoulder-length dark hair, wearing a textured jacket and floral earrings, set against a red and orange gradient background.]()
Freeke Heijman
Vice President
European Quantum Industry Consortium (QuIC)
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![Black-and-white portrait of a man with glasses, short hair, wearing a suit and tie, with a colorful gradient background.]()
Dr. Masahiro Horibe
Deputy Director
G-QuAT
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Dr. Travis Humble
Director of Quantum Science Center
Oak Ridge National Laboratory
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![Black and white portrait photo of an older man with glasses, gray hair, wearing a suit and tie, with a colorful digitized background.]()
Dr. Said Jahanmir
Executive Secretary, Subcommittee on Advanced Manufacturing
National Science and Technology Council
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![Black and white portrait of a woman wearing glasses and a white lab coat with the Cleveland Clinic logo, standing against a gradient background of purple and blue, smiling at the camera.]()
Dr. Lara Jehi
Chief Research Information Officer
Cleveland Clinic
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![Black and white portrait of a confident woman with short curly hair, wearing hoop earrings and a blazer, against a red and orange gradient background.]()
Jennifer Jones
CEO
Howard County Economic Development Authority
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![Black-and-white portrait of a woman with short, light-colored hair, set against a bright green background.]()
Outi Keski-Äijö
Head of Quantum Computing Campaign
Business Finland
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Matthew Kinsella
CEO
Infleqtion
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![Black and white portrait of a smiling woman with shoulder-length hair, wearing a black blazer and blouse, against a vibrant purple and orange gradient background.]()
Kaniah Konkoly-Thege
Chief Legal Officer, SVP Government Relations
Quantinuum
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![Black and white professional portrait of a smiling man with dark hair, wearing a suit and tie, against a blue gradient background.]()
Michael Kratsios*
President's Science and Technology Advisor
Office of Science and Technology Policy, the White House
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![Dr. James Kushmerick]()
Dr. James Kushmerick
Director, Physical Measurement Laboratory (PML)
National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST)
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![Black-and-white portrait of a man wearing glasses and formal attire, set against a gradient background transitioning from purple to green.]()
Ambassador Vinay Kwatra
Ambassador of India to the United States
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Lisa Lambert
CEO
Quantum Industry Canada
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![Black and white portrait of a man with glasses, wearing a suit and tie, against a colorful pink and yellow background.]()
Edy Liongosari
Chief Research Scientist
Accenture
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![Black and white photo of a smiling middle-aged man with dark, slightly graying hair and a beard, wearing a suit jacket and white shirt, against a blue and green gradient background.]()
Paul Lipman
Chief Strategy Officer
Infleqtion
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![Black and white portrait of a middle-aged man with glasses, a beard, and gray hair, set against a modern background with a gradient from purple to orange.]()
Dr. Jay Lowell
Principal Senior Technical Fellow, Chief Scientist for Boeing Disruptive Computing and Networks
The Boeing Company
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![Black and white portrait of a smiling man wearing glasses, a suit, and a striped tie, with a colorful gradient background transitioning from blue to purple.]()
Dr. Andre Marshall
Vice President for Research, Innovation, and Economic Impact
George Mason University
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![Black and white portrait of a smiling woman with dark hair, earrings, and a black top with white trim, against a colorful gradient background.]()
Pritha Mehra
Chief Information Officer & Executive Vice President
United States Postal Service
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![Black and white portrait of a smiling man with a shaved head wearing a black t-shirt with "Quantum Source" logo on the chest, against a colorful gradient background.]()
Oded Melamed
CEO
Quantum Source
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![Black and white portrait of a woman with curly hair, wearing a dark suit and white shirt, smiling, against a vibrant pink and purple gradient background.]()
Dr. Celia Merzbacher
Executive Director
Quantum Economic Development Consortium (QED-C)
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![Black and white portrait of a smiling man in a suit and tie, with a small flag pin on his lapel, against a gradient background transitioning from blue to green.]()
Governor Wes Moore
Governor of Maryland
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![Dr. Michele Mosca]()
Dr. MICHELE MOSCA
Co-Founder, President & CEO
EvolutionQ
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![Black and white portrait of a woman with long dark hair, smiling, wearing a pearl necklace and blazer, against a gradient yellow to orange background.]()
Rima Oueid
Senior Commercialization Executive
Department of Energy
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![Black and white portrait of a smiling man in a suit with a patterned tie, wearing glasses, with arms crossed, set against a gradient orange background.]()
Dr. Darryll Pines
President
University of Maryland
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Curtis Priem
Co-Founder & Inventor
NVIDIA
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![Black and white portrait of a smiling man in a suit with an American flag pin, set against an orange and red gradient background.]()
Governor JB Pritzker
Governor of Illinois
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![Black and white portrait of a man in formal attire, wearing a suit, tie, and a pin on his lapel, with a colorful gradient background.]()
Anthony Pugliese
Chief Commercial Officer & Director
Office of Technology Commercialization, US Department of Energy
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Minister Sakari Puisto
Minister of Economic Affairs Finland
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![Black and white portrait of a middle-aged man with glasses, facial hair, wearing a black blazer over a black shirt, against a gradient background transitioning from blue to green.]()
James Quigley
Commissioner & Chairman of the Board
Fairfax County Economic Development Agency
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![Black and white portrait of a smiling man in a suit with a patterned tie and a pocket square, against a colorful gradient background.]()
Buddy Rizer
Ecxecutive Director
Loudoun County Economic Development Authority
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![Black and white portrait of a man wearing glasses, smiling, against a green background.]()
Dr. Michael Rosenblatt
Director of the Federal Science and Technology Policy Directorate and National Quantum Strategy (NQS) Secretariat
Innovation, Science, and Economic Development Canada
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![Black and white portrait of a smiling man wearing a suit and tie against a yellow and orange gradient background.]()
Dr. Robert Rudnitsky
Division Chief, Strategy and Planning, Office of Advanced Manufacturing
National Institute of Standards and Technology
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![Black and white portrait of a woman with long dark hair, smiling, wearing earrings, against a colorful pink, yellow, and purple background.]()
Pallabi Saboo
Founder, Harmonia Holdings Group
Trustee, Connected DMV
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![Ambassador Jarmo Sareva]()
Ambassador Jarmo Sareva
Consul General, Ambassador
Consulate General of Finland in New York
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![Black and white portrait of a man wearing glasses, with a colorful gradient background.]()
Dr. Shintaro Sato
Fellow, Head of Quantum Laboratory
Fujitsu Research
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![Black and white professional portrait of a serious middle-aged man in a suit against a colorful gradient background.]()
Dr. Martin Schmidt
President
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
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![Black and white portrait of a smiling man with short dark hair, goatee, wearing a collared shirt, against a gradient background from yellow to orange.]()
Sean Silbert
Senior Advisor, Innovation, Technology & Science
Embassy of the Kingdon of the Netherlands
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![Black and white portrait of a middle-aged man with short dark hair, a goatee, and a mustache, smiling, wearing a white collared shirt, with a gradient background transitioning from purple to teal.]()
Stu Solomon
Chair
Connected DMV
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![Black and white photo of a man in a suit smiling with a colorful purple and pink gradient background.]()
Paul Stimers
Partner
Holland & Knight
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![Close-up portrait of a woman with dark skin and curly hair, smiling, set against a green background]()
Ebony Stocks
Interim President & CEO
Prince George's Economic Development Corporation
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Dr. Bob Sutor
CEO & Founder
Sutor Group
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![Close-up black-and-white portrait of a man in a suit with a split-color background of blue and yellow.]()
Dr. Charles Tahan
Partner
Microsoft Quantum
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![Black and white portrait of a smiling man wearing glasses, a suit, dress shirt, and tie, set against a gradient background of blue, turquoise, and green.]()
Paul Terry
CEO
Photonic
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![Black and white portrait of a man in a suit with a tie, set against a gradient blue background.]()
George Thomas
President & CEO
Connected DMV
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![Black and white portrait of a smiling man in a suit, wearing glasses, with a gradient purple to pink background.]()
Don Upson
Founder & Chairman
Government Business Executive Forum
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![Black and white photo of a man wearing a suit and tie, with a colorful gradient background.]()
Bill Vass
Chief Technology Officer
Booz Allen
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![Black and white portrait of a man in a suit and tie with glasses, smiling, set against a colorful gradient background.]()
Dr. Yaakov Weinstein
Chief Scientist, Quantum Technologies
MITRE
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![Dr. CARL WILLIAMS]()
Dr. CARL WILLIAMS
CEO
CJW Quantum Consulting
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![A black and white professional portrait of a man in a suit jacket and black shirt against a blue gradient background.]()
Jason Zander
Executive Vice President
Microsoft
2025 STARTUP PITCH COMPETITIONWhere Quantum Startups Took Center Stage
The Quantum Startup Pitch Competition returned in 2025 as a high-signal showcase for companies ready to scale quantum innovation into real-world impact. Presented by Booz Allen, the competition brought together emerging leaders in computing, sensing, photonics, and quantum-AI convergence to pitch live before investors, industry experts, and government decision-makers. More than a demo day, the competition underscored QWC’s role as a launchpad—connecting breakthrough science with capital, customers, and partners prepared to move fast.
2025 GLOBAL INDUSTRY CHALLENGEFrom Challenge to Deployment
The Global Industry Challenge turned quantum ambition into real-world execution at scale. Drawing more than 600 applicants from 60+ countries, the Challenge brought researchers, startups, and students together in a fast-paced, global sprint to apply quantum computing—and AI adjacencies—to high-value industry problems spanning finance, insurance, infrastructure, energy, and life sciences. Hosted as a centerpiece of the International Year of Quantum, the program culminated in five winning solutions announced live on the Quantum World Congress 2025 mainstage, demonstrating a decisive shift from research to deployment and proving what’s possible when industry challenges meet global quantum talent.
2025 QUANTUM LEADERSHIP AWARDSHonoring the Leaders Who Moved the Field
The Quantum Leadership Awards recognized the individuals and organizations whose leadership turned quantum progress into measurable impact. Presented live at Quantum World Congress 2025, the awards honored pioneers across industry, government, academia, and global organizations—leaders shaping quantum’s trajectory through breakthrough research, system-scale engineering, national strategy, and international collaboration. Together, the 2025 honorees reflect the full arc of the quantum ecosystem and the human leadership powering its momentum.
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Dr. Patricia "Patty" Lee
2025 INDUSTRY PIONEER OF THE YEAR
Quantinuum
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Sylvie Retailleau
2025 GOVERNMENT PIONEER OF THE YEAR
Professor at Université Paris-Saclay, Former Minister of the French Republic
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Dr. John Preskill
2025 ACADEMIC PIONEER OF THE YEAR
California Institute of Technology -
International Year of Quantum Science and Technology
2025 ORGANIZATION OF THE YEAR
2025 VIDEO LIBRARYPress Play on the Future
Relive the moments that defined Quantum World Congress 2025. From mainstage keynotes and global policy updates to startup pitches and leadership awards, this video library captures the conversations, breakthroughs, and voices that shaped the year quantum took center stage. Dive in to explore the ideas—and the people—moving the field forward.