Quantum CARLA 2025: A dive into the Quantum Science and Technology landscape

On March 28th, ICFO organised its fourth edition of Quantum CARLA: the Quantum Careers Symposium 2025 which was held at one of the landmarks of Barcelona, La Pedrera, in an hybrid format. This edition was dedicated to the International Year of Quantum Science and Technology with a vibrant audience of more than 300 students and early-career researchers both in person and online and 17 renowned speakers. Attendees had the chance to explore exciting career development opportunities, attend talks about the quantum science and technology field, and network with peers and speakers, opening new doors for their career development aspects. 

The event was well received both by speakers and participants with a high number of feedback responses and an overall rating of the event 4.5 out of 5. 96% of the participants would recommend Quantum CARLA to a friend, and over 90% stated that they benefited by attending the event.  

ICFO Director Prof. Dr. Oriol Romero-Isart kicked-off the symposium by reminding the participants that professional careers are not always a straight line and that it is important to embrace randomness and explore the opportunities that life offers. Prof. Dr. Antonio Acín provided an insightful introduction to the emerging quantum science and technology landscape. Following, two engaging panels, from academia to industry demonstrated to attendees the many career paths that the field of quantum science and technology offers. The “Academia panel“, moderated by Prof. Dr. Robert Sewell, featured insights from Dr. Alba Cervera Lierta, Dr. Aleksandra Sierant, Dr. Javier Argüello Luengo, and Prof. Dr. Philippe Grangier, who shared their career paths and their main research topics. Later, Dr. Silvia Carrasco led the “Industry panel“, where Dr. Gianvito Lucivero, Jaume Figueras Solanilla, Dr. Marta P Estarellas, and Vanesa Diaz shared perspectives on career opportunities and discussed how quantum innovation is being shaped in the industrial landscape. After that, Ariadna Gómez del Pulgar Martínez, Dr. Christian Hölzl, Ignacio Pérez Ramos and Dr. Sandra de Vega shared their personal experiences and professional career paths, in the panel “Quantum testimonials“, moderated by Dr. Zoi Melissari. 

This edition featured a new technical element additional to the inspiring panels. Alberto Garcia Fernandez, Dr. Miquel Rudé Moreno and Sandra Mingot, who delved into cutting-edge topics within the session of “Trends in Quantum Science and Technology” which was moderated by Prof. Dr. Verònica Ahufinger Breto. The symposium concluded with Dr. Lydia Sanmartí-Vila closing words after which in person participants moved to the networking lunch space to connect with each other, with the speakers, the sponsoring organizations, and HR experts.  

The symposium was organised within the Quantum Flagship initiative and the 360 CARLA project, in the framework of the Master in Quantum Science and Technology Barcelona and in collaboration with the European project Digitally Enhanced Quantum Technology Master (DigiQ), and the Catalonia Quantum Academy (CQA). The symposium was also sponsored by LuxQuanta, QSENSATO SRL, Quside, Secpho and Thorlabs. 

Quotes from the speakers: 

“The Quantum CARLA symposium offered a great opportunity to share concepts and views with our young professionals, the future of our industry. I enjoyed all the discussions I had with my panelist colleagues, and with the students. Great venue!”

“The Quantum Careers Symposium has been a great opportunity to explain our activities to many talented and motivated students. This strongly encourages us to keep on generating innovation in the field of quantum sensing.”

Quotes from participants: 

“I would recommend Quantum CARLA because it provides valuable insights into quantum science and technology. The sessions were informative, and the opportunity to interact with experts was beneficial.”

“The event is overall super nice! I will attend next year!”

“It was a wonderful opportunity to get know about Quantum Technology from both academic and industrial perspective.”