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Year of Quantum 2025: What does this global declaration mean for Finland?

The year of 2025 marks a significant step forward for quantum technology research and development both in Finland and beyond.
Collage of black and white photographs showing a scientist working with heavy machinery and complex equipment.
Photos: Top and bottom left by Mikko Raskinen/Aalto University, Bottom right by Aalto University Archives: Illustration: Gavin Pugh/Aalto University

This article first appeared on .

The United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) has declared 2025 the .

Finnish quantum players are capitalizing on the momentum of this declaration by producing events, public education and outreach activities, and cutting-edge research output at a higher rate than ever before. See the full list of activities for 2025 at the bottom of this page.

鈥淭he Year of Quantum declaration comes at an exciting time in the Finnish quantum ecosystem. Research and educational institutions, industrial partners, and ministries of government continue to carve new paths of collaboration in quantum technology research and development, and the year of 2025 is no exception for this work,鈥 says Aalto University President Ilkka Niemel盲, who chairs the Leadership Committee of InstituteQ, Finland鈥檚 national quantum institute.

鈥淲e at InstituteQ 鈥 along with our member partners 鈥 have big plans for 2025. This year will witness the expansion of our organization to include more research institutions and industries under the InstituteQ umbrella. This not only enables InstituteQ to better coordinate quantum collaboration on a national scale, but it also kick-starts a new era of public engagement and education surrounding Finland鈥檚 quantum science and technology expertise,鈥 says InstituteQ Director Jukka Pekola, a professor of physics at Aalto University.

The year of 2025 also marks the publication of , which is still under development. This strategy will see the expansion of collaboration between quantum research institutions and companies domestically, as well as between Nordic and other international partners.  

In addition, Finnish quantum-tech startups continue to make both local and international headlines. For example, new quantum computing algorithm company launched with 鈧4 million in seed funding in 2024. And , a VTT spin-off, raised 鈧2.35 million in funding to develop next-generation parametric amplifiers also near the end of last year. This type of new startup activity, combined with Finland鈥檚 already-robust quantum industrial network, serves to bolster Finland鈥檚 status in the global quantum arena.

鈥淔inland鈥檚 success story in quantum technologies continues to unfold in 2025. We are on the verge of achieving the next major national milestone in the three-year journey to scale up Finland鈥檚 quantum computer. As we advance towards real-world quantum computer applications, this milestone underscores Finland鈥檚 strategic competitiveness in the rapidly evolving technology landscape. Furthermore, this year marks the beginning of the construction of Kvanttinova, a groundbreaking pilot environment that will provide companies with significant opportunities to make a quantum leap鈥, says VTT鈥檚 President and CEO Antti Vasara, who also chairs the Finnish Quantum Strategy working group.

And Finland has a firm seat at the global quantum decision-making table. has been appointed as the new EU Technology Chief, and she has made a strong case for international cooperation towards Europe鈥檚 quantum technology leadership.

From the early days of Olli V. Lounasmaa鈥檚 Low Temperature Laboratory to now, Finland has garnered a high-profile reputation as a quantum science and technology powerhouse 鈥 both Finnish companies and research institutions regularly contribute to the second wave of quantum advancements globally.

鈥淭he Finnish quantum ecosystem is on a very solid basis from foundational research to innovation activities and applications of quantum technology. The year 2025 will be instrumental in strengthening the collaborations in quantum technology,鈥 says Sasu Tarkoma, the Dean of the Faculty of Science at the University of Helsinki.

Much of the work of Finland鈥檚 national quantum strategy and the Year of Quantum 2025 local activities will be carried out by InstituteQ. This quantum institute operates as Finland鈥檚 umbrella organization responsible for coordinating quantum collaboration in the domains of business innovation, workforce education, research, and ecosystem development. Its founding members are Aalto University, VTT, and the University of Helsinki. It also houses the , a Research Council of Finland project jointly funded by the council and participating institutions.

See below a preliminary list of quantum events and activities taking place in Finland in 2025:

Events:


Year round

Did you know that InstituteQ invites world renowned scientists to give scientific talks? These free events occur throughout the year, and roughly 10 talks are planned for 2025. Former speakers include Nobel Prize-winning physicist Frank Wilczek, Oxford Professor J. C. S茅amus Davis, and Google Quantum AI鈥檚 Alexandre Bourassa. to the InstituteQ newsletter and mailing list to get updates on upcoming colloquia.


February 11-13, 2025

This iteration of the TRNM workshop will be held in Levi, Finland. The workshop will be focused on 2D materials and their heterostructures, touching on the following topics: 

  • Designer materials: realization of new types of electronic, magnetic, and optical responses in 2D materials and exploring avenues of atomic scale control, including defects, molecular assembly, and atom manipulation.
  • Methods: new techniques for the characterization of 2D nanomaterials, including progress in both experiments and theory. This includes developments in machine learning methods for data analysis and simulation.


March 26-28, 2025

Physics Days 鈥 Fysiikan p盲iv盲t 2025 will be organized in the Linnanmaa Campus of the University of Oulu. The conference is organized by the University of Oulu, Nano and Molecular Systems Research Unit, NMR Research Unit, and Space Physics and Astronomy Research Unit. The theme of Physics Days 2025 is 鈥淪pinning Around.鈥 The conference will cover a broad range of topics in various areas of physics.


April 11, 2025

The University of Jyv盲skyl盲 will hold this yearly event as a celebration of World Quantum Day. Come play quantum games, collect rewards by solving quantum puzzles, and hear about research on quantum information and computing conducted in the IT faculty. The event is open to all interested. 


May 20-21, 2025

Lakeside Quantum Dialogue is an event hosted by the University of Jyv盲skyl盲, where new ideas related to quantum information are presented in a form of engaging talks and then discussed while walking by the lake. The surroundings of the Faculty of Information Technology provide a great environment for this immersive meeting. The event is organized by the.

Low-Temperature Quantum Detectors 2025
August 3-6, 2025 | website TBA

Recent developments in low-temperature detectors incorporate genuine quantum features, promising to reach unprecedented levels of measurement precision. On a fundamental level, these highly sensitive detectors will give us a glimpse into the world of quantum/thermal fluctuations and the effect of measurement backaction, and will advance the utilization of quantum resources and feedback. They will create a pathway to scientific breakthroughs: novel phenomena in condensed-matter physics, enhanced spectroscopical characterization, observation of new particles, and understanding the interaction between gravity and quantum-mechanical objects. This event serves as a satellite event immediately before the in Bilbao, Spain. 

Finnish Quantum Days 2025
September 3-4, 2025 | website TBA

The Finnish Quantum Days, supported by InstituteQ and the Finnish Quantum Flagship, is an annual event that was first organized as InstituteQ鈥檚 Symposium in 2023. This event invites together the Finnish quantum community, and the mission is to invigorate quantum collaboration and offer views on current and future developments in quantum science and engineering.

JQUEST
End of 2025 | final date and website TBA

JQUEST is the University of Jyv盲skyl盲鈥檚 Quantum Electronics, Superconductivity, Topology and information workshop. This event has previously invited together the quantum technologies community to collaborate and share new insights on current and future developments in quantum science and technologies.

Education:


March 11-12, 2025

To celebrate the Quantum Doctoral education programme, Aalto University will host a two-day kickoff event to officially gather the community together. The event will include plenary talks, student presentations, and networking opportunities with industrial partners. QDOC represents 鈧23 million in funding from the Research Council of Finland for 90 new quantum doctoral positions, announced in February 2024 by the Finnish Ministry of Education.
 

The QuantEd agreement gives students of selected degree programmes at Aalto University and the University of Helsinki the ability to sign-up for quantum-related courses organized by the other institution. At Aalto University, the agreement applies to students enrolled in four Master鈥檚 programmes and three doctoral programmes. At the University of Helsinki, it covers students across all Master鈥檚 and doctoral programmes within the Faculty of Science, as well as those in two Bachelor鈥檚 programmes.

QPlayLearn makes quantum concepts accessible for everyone through engaging and interactive videos, games, and courses. And there is much more planned for 2025: exciting handshakes, a quantum music club, and a meet-and-greet event. But that鈥檚 not all 鈥 QPlayLearn will also be launching its second QTindu course, 鈥淨uantum Computing 鈥 the soft way!鈥

Make sure to also check out QPlayLearn鈥檚 first QTIndu course, 鈥,鈥 which introduces some basic concepts of quantum science and technologies to prepare you for your quantum computing journey. And it鈥檚 totally free!

This Informal monthly meeting hosted by the University of Jyv盲skyl盲 makes quantum physics accessible to the general public. 

The ABCs of Quantum Computing is a publicly available three-part course offered by the University of Jyv盲skyl盲. Quantum computers are constantly in the media. But what kind of devices are they? How does a quantum computer differ from a traditional computer? How does one program a quantum computer? And what is quantum information? Welcome to learning the ABCs of Quantum Computing! 

Research and Innovation:

The Finnish Quantum Flagship opened its first call for lighthouse and exploratory projects as part of Program 4: Quantum Future (P4). This is the first of three planned calls during the course of the flagship (2024, 2026, 2028). Each call will result in the funding of 1-2 high-impact lighthouse projects and/or 1-2 smaller exploratory projects. Grant application announcements for this first round are planned to be released in March 2025.

VTT鈥檚 50-qubit computer to be unveiled in 2025

VTT announced the launch of its in the Fall 2023. Work has been ongoing for the next iteration, a 50-qubit quantum computer, and it is expected to be unveiled in 2025. In the coming years, the development will continue as the Finnish government has announced a total budget of 鈧70 million to scale up the quantum computer towards 300 qubits and quantum advantage.

Kvanttinova plans push forward

is a joint initiative by VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland, the City of Espoo, Aalto University and the industry members of the semiconductor industry group of Technology Industries of Finland. It will serve as a new RDI hub for microelectronics and quantum industry players in Espoo, and construction could begin as early as 2025.

Logo with the word 'InstituteQ' featuring a gold and black circular design, on a white textured background.

InstituteQ coordinates quantum research, education, and business in Finland

Pixelated graduate figure dissolving on the left with text 'Quantum Doctoral Programme' below.

National Graduate School in Quantum Science and Technology

Logo of Finnish Quantum Flagship with stylised penguin in the letter Q

Aalto University is coordinating the Finnish Quantum Flagship 鈥 an eight year project uniting quantum science and technology research institutions and and companies throughout Finland.

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