Periodic Reporting for period 1 - InCoQFlag (International Cooperation on Quantum Technologies)
Période du rapport: 2020-09-01 au 2022-02-28
The contemporary world’s challenges are more and more related to international competition in Quantum technologies and Europe has a strong position with world-leading researchers in Quantum domain.
The overall criterion for international cooperation in research and innovation is that Europe should benefit at least as much as its partners from the international cooperation.
However, mechanisms enabling winning partnerships between the EU and countries that are massively investing in Quantum Science and Technologies are still to be developped.
The InCoQFlag project aims at delivering a roadmap of actions to be implemented in Europe to generate win-win strategies in international cooperation.
Within InCoQFlag, we will investigate what the best strategy for Europe is in terms of collaboration to develop win-win situations with targeted countries: the USA, Canada and Japan.
The overall objectives of the project are:
1. Outline Europe’s strengths and missing competences to benefit from international collaboration,
2. Mapping national innovation strategies and available funding schemes in targeted countries,
3. Roadmap for win-win International Cooperation in Quantum research and innovation.
The overall criterion for international cooperation in research and innovation is that Europe should benefit at least as much as its partners from the international cooperation.
However, mechanisms enabling winning partnerships between the EU and countries that are massively investing in Quantum Science and Technologies are still to be developped.
The InCoQFlag project aims at delivering a roadmap of actions to be implemented in Europe to generate win-win strategies in international cooperation.
Within InCoQFlag, we will investigate what the best strategy for Europe is in terms of collaboration to develop win-win situations with targeted countries: the USA, Canada and Japan.
The overall objectives of the project are:
1. Outline Europe’s strengths and missing competences to benefit from international collaboration,
2. Mapping national innovation strategies and available funding schemes in targeted countries,
3. Roadmap for win-win International Cooperation in Quantum research and innovation.
In the first project phase, InCoQFlag action consisted in collecting sufficient data about strenghts and competences in Europe and targeted countries (objectives 1 and 2).
To perform project's objectives, InCoQFlag partners are using three types of action:
I) Collect data from existing reports, conduct surveys and interviews among key stakeholders;
II) Organize bilateral meetings and events between the EC and targeted countries providing high value information from governments and key stakeholders.
III) Setting up and working with the Roadmap Committee to ensure input from the main stakeholders of the Quantum Flagship initiative
I. COLLECTING DATA
Project’s final objective being to provide a roadmap on international cooperation to the European Commission, our first step was to understand targeted countries' organization in supporting quantum and identify opportunities and threats in collaborations with Europe.
To achieve in a coherent way the global analysis of targeted countries' within project's different tasks, first action was to elaborate a common methodology to collect and analyze heuristic data from interviews and surveys.
Methodology implemented: profiles identified for all SWOTs' interviews; list of questions per profile; concentrate our action on suitable periods to contact stakeholders: close to the period of bilateral or networking event organized by InCoQFlag; validation process and scoring of the overal heuristic data.
In order to carry out the objectives of the project, each partner collected data in relation to their respective SWOT:
- TNO: QT Science, competences and collaborations (objective no 1)
- NCN: QT policies and funding schemes (objective no 2)
- CEA: QT innovation ecosystems (objectives no 1 and no 2)
The undertakings proceeded for the purpose of these tasks are:
-analysis of strategic policy documents and funding instruments in all mentioned regions;
- carrying out in-depth interviews with the high-level experts at the governmental, scientific and industrial level (during all planned networking events);
- gathering know-how from the European experts in the field in the form of guidelines/expertise on future cooperation (the EU perspective).
The first country targeted for data completion was Canada, as it was the most advanced policy programme with the European Commission. Results for the US and Japan are in progress.
All data were scored and reviewed to assess volume and quality and could feed the three SWOT tables.
The three SWOT analysis will be delivered as planned on the second period of project.
They will be integrated as the learnings for the win-win cooperation strategies of the Roadmap lead by Partner ICFO in the second period of InCoQFlag (objective no 3).
II. BILATERAL MEETINGS and EVENTS
Implementation of this task is closely linked to the political agenda of the European Commission.
For this reason, our planned actions could be deployed at different levels of achievments: we were able to act quickly and comprehensively with Canada, with the launch of a joint call, while this is not yet the case with Japan and the USA.
Nevertheless, several meetings with Japanese representatives were conducted, and a bilateral meeting date was fixed but this action had to be cancelled.
In the first project phase, InCoQFlag organised the EU - Canada bilateral meeting, which was in fact a series of meetings between the European Commission and Canadian government representatives.
The result of these bilateral meetings were:
- the launch of a the joint call in the first Horizon Europe Work Programme in June 2021 with the overall €8M budget for collaborative projects
- two days event on May 3rd (info Day) and May 31st (networking event), 2021 coordinated by partner CEA and co-organized with NSERC
- the EU-Canada networking event established contacts between public and private stakeholders of the quantum community in Europe and Canada.
III. THE ROADMAP COMMITTEE
The Roadmap Committee is in charge of developing the roadmap for international cooperation document that will include recommendations for actions.
Currently, preparations for the first working meeting with the RC are being made, targeting to have this in May or June 2022.
To perform project's objectives, InCoQFlag partners are using three types of action:
I) Collect data from existing reports, conduct surveys and interviews among key stakeholders;
II) Organize bilateral meetings and events between the EC and targeted countries providing high value information from governments and key stakeholders.
III) Setting up and working with the Roadmap Committee to ensure input from the main stakeholders of the Quantum Flagship initiative
I. COLLECTING DATA
Project’s final objective being to provide a roadmap on international cooperation to the European Commission, our first step was to understand targeted countries' organization in supporting quantum and identify opportunities and threats in collaborations with Europe.
To achieve in a coherent way the global analysis of targeted countries' within project's different tasks, first action was to elaborate a common methodology to collect and analyze heuristic data from interviews and surveys.
Methodology implemented: profiles identified for all SWOTs' interviews; list of questions per profile; concentrate our action on suitable periods to contact stakeholders: close to the period of bilateral or networking event organized by InCoQFlag; validation process and scoring of the overal heuristic data.
In order to carry out the objectives of the project, each partner collected data in relation to their respective SWOT:
- TNO: QT Science, competences and collaborations (objective no 1)
- NCN: QT policies and funding schemes (objective no 2)
- CEA: QT innovation ecosystems (objectives no 1 and no 2)
The undertakings proceeded for the purpose of these tasks are:
-analysis of strategic policy documents and funding instruments in all mentioned regions;
- carrying out in-depth interviews with the high-level experts at the governmental, scientific and industrial level (during all planned networking events);
- gathering know-how from the European experts in the field in the form of guidelines/expertise on future cooperation (the EU perspective).
The first country targeted for data completion was Canada, as it was the most advanced policy programme with the European Commission. Results for the US and Japan are in progress.
All data were scored and reviewed to assess volume and quality and could feed the three SWOT tables.
The three SWOT analysis will be delivered as planned on the second period of project.
They will be integrated as the learnings for the win-win cooperation strategies of the Roadmap lead by Partner ICFO in the second period of InCoQFlag (objective no 3).
II. BILATERAL MEETINGS and EVENTS
Implementation of this task is closely linked to the political agenda of the European Commission.
For this reason, our planned actions could be deployed at different levels of achievments: we were able to act quickly and comprehensively with Canada, with the launch of a joint call, while this is not yet the case with Japan and the USA.
Nevertheless, several meetings with Japanese representatives were conducted, and a bilateral meeting date was fixed but this action had to be cancelled.
In the first project phase, InCoQFlag organised the EU - Canada bilateral meeting, which was in fact a series of meetings between the European Commission and Canadian government representatives.
The result of these bilateral meetings were:
- the launch of a the joint call in the first Horizon Europe Work Programme in June 2021 with the overall €8M budget for collaborative projects
- two days event on May 3rd (info Day) and May 31st (networking event), 2021 coordinated by partner CEA and co-organized with NSERC
- the EU-Canada networking event established contacts between public and private stakeholders of the quantum community in Europe and Canada.
III. THE ROADMAP COMMITTEE
The Roadmap Committee is in charge of developing the roadmap for international cooperation document that will include recommendations for actions.
Currently, preparations for the first working meeting with the RC are being made, targeting to have this in May or June 2022.
The four SWOT analysis will be delivered on the second period of project.
Further work on the project will involve extending the reports by the information regarding the USA and Japan, gathered on the basis of available data.
D1.2 SWOT on Quantum Technology Policies and Funding Schemes in the EU, USA, Canada and Japan shall be completed in M26.
NCN has prepared SWOT analysis reflecting dynamics of the QT strategies in the context of schemes applied both in Europe and Canada in order to identify Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats for the win-win collaboration. The report is at the same a draft constituting frames for the final report referring also to the findings on the USA and Japan in terms of Task 1.5. The document shall be the input for creation of the global SWOT analysis indicated in Task 2.2 and Recommendations and Roadmap included in Task 2.4
Impacts:
First tangible impact of InCoQFlag project is the launch of the joint call in the first Horizon Europe Work Programme in June 2021 with the overall €8M budget for collaborative projects gathering european and canadian academia scientists and industries.
Results of these projects will have economic and societal impact at first in Europe and Canada, but also more largely benefiting to the scientific community.
The EU-Canada networking event established contacts between public and private stakeholders of the quantum community in Europe and Canada.
National innovation strategies constitute a ground for public funding schemes which are considered as the major providers of disruptive technologies through basic science, which needs long term financial support. The process of mapping national innovation strategies and available funding schemes allows identifying financial leverages and potential regulations to be developed.
SWOT analysis referring to the QT landscape of Canada, USA and Japan in the context of the EU can be a fruitful source of possible effective solutions.
Further work on the project will involve extending the reports by the information regarding the USA and Japan, gathered on the basis of available data.
D1.2 SWOT on Quantum Technology Policies and Funding Schemes in the EU, USA, Canada and Japan shall be completed in M26.
NCN has prepared SWOT analysis reflecting dynamics of the QT strategies in the context of schemes applied both in Europe and Canada in order to identify Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats for the win-win collaboration. The report is at the same a draft constituting frames for the final report referring also to the findings on the USA and Japan in terms of Task 1.5. The document shall be the input for creation of the global SWOT analysis indicated in Task 2.2 and Recommendations and Roadmap included in Task 2.4
Impacts:
First tangible impact of InCoQFlag project is the launch of the joint call in the first Horizon Europe Work Programme in June 2021 with the overall €8M budget for collaborative projects gathering european and canadian academia scientists and industries.
Results of these projects will have economic and societal impact at first in Europe and Canada, but also more largely benefiting to the scientific community.
The EU-Canada networking event established contacts between public and private stakeholders of the quantum community in Europe and Canada.
National innovation strategies constitute a ground for public funding schemes which are considered as the major providers of disruptive technologies through basic science, which needs long term financial support. The process of mapping national innovation strategies and available funding schemes allows identifying financial leverages and potential regulations to be developed.
SWOT analysis referring to the QT landscape of Canada, USA and Japan in the context of the EU can be a fruitful source of possible effective solutions.