Caltech’s John Preskill NAMED 2025 Academic Pioneer in Quantum

Quantum World Congress (QWC) today announced Dr. John Preskill, the Richard P. Feynman Professor of Theoretical Physics at Caltech, as the 2025 Academic Pioneer in Quantum, honoring a career that has defined the theoretical foundations of quantum information science—from quantum error correction to shaping the field’s most influential concepts.

Preskill’s scholarship helped establish quantum error correction as the path to scalable quantum computing; he also popularized field-defining benchmarks and terms—coining “quantum supremacy” and characterizing today’s “NISQ era”—that frame how researchers chart progress from noisy devices to fault-tolerant systems. At Caltech, Preskill directs the Institute for Quantum Information and Matter (IQIM), where he has mentored dozens of students and postdocs who now lead labs, companies, and national programs worldwide.

In his acceptance remarks, Preskill reflected, “Right now is a thrilling time for quantum science and technology, a time of rapid progress, but these are still the early days in a nascent second quantum revolution. In quantum computing, we face two fundamental questions: How can we scale up to machines that can solve very hard computational problems? And once we do, what will be the most important applications for science and for industry?”

“John’s work gave quantum computing its roadmap. He translated daunting physics into frameworks that engineers can build on and students can learn from—and in doing so, he helped an entire community move faster together,” said George Thomas, President and CEO, Connected DMV.

The Quantum Leadership Awards honor people and organizations catalyzing measurable progress in quantum science and technology across commercialization, policy, research, and workforce. Awardees are recognized at Quantum World Congress 2025 (September 16–18, Capital One Hall, Tysons, VA). Past honorees include Dr. Cathy Foley (Government), Dr. Jay Gambetta (Industry), Dr. Jungsang Kim (Academic), and Quantum Delta NL (Organization).