UCLA to Build Quantum Research Center in Former Mall

UCLA has acquired the former Westside Pavilion shopping mall to transform it into the UCLA Research Park, a hub for students, researchers and industry experts.

Two multidisciplinary research centers, the UCLA Center for Quantum Science and Engineering and the California Institute for Immunology and Immunotherapy will be the first to move in.

The UCLA Center for Quantum Science and Engineering was founded in 2018 and conducts research into quantum computing, communication and sensing. It has received funding from Boeing and the National Science Foundation (NSF) and has UCLA faculty members from the fields of physics, engineering, computer science, chemistry, mathematics and biostatistics among its members.

At its new location, the center will also be the base for the Quantum Leap Challenge Institute for Present and Future Quantum Computation, an NSF-funded initiative that includes UCLA and seven other universities.

The state of California is funding the move with a $500 million investment, of which $200 million has already been allocated, supported by a group of founding donors.

“Launching a research park that joins biosciences with quantum science and engineering – as well as other emerging technologies, like next-generation artificial intelligence – is a once-in-a-generation event, and we are honored to be a part of it all,” said the donors in a joint statement.

Related:Baidu Ends Quantum Operations

Google also previously leased part of the property and helped make the move possible.

“California is the epicenter of global innovation — from the creation of the internet to the dominance of artificial intelligence, humanity’s future happens here first,” said California Gov. Gavin Newsom.

“Leveraging the next waves of technology and science — quantum computing and the immense potential of immunology — the UCLA Research Park will cement California’s global economic, scientific and technological dominance into the 22nd century, and beyond.”