NQCC's Quantum Hackathon 2024: Use Case Competition

Overview

Thank you for expressing your interest in participating in the NQCC’s annual UK quantum Hackathon for 2024! The Hackathon will provide an exciting opportunity to explore your specific use case using a quantum computing platform, gain exposure to different problems and approaches, and to network with quantum compute providers and developers. 

Aims 

The NQCC’s annual UK Quantum Hackathon aims to demonstrate how quantum computing can solve real-world problems by bringing together talented people from across the value chain, with the objectives to: 

• Connect the UK quantum ecosystem through networking and collaboration throughout the event 

• Understand the opportunities and limitations of quantum computing by demonstrating the current capabilities of the technology 

• Explore a broad range of use cases for quantum computing 

• Enable aspiring practitioners to develop their quantum computing programming and applications skills 

• Showcase the breadth of technology available currently and enable a broad range of users to access these tools 

Format 

The NQCC’s 3rd annual UK Quantum Hackathon will take place on the 22nd, 23rd and 24th July at the University of Warwick.  

Teams of quantum computing developers made up of research students and early career researchers, are assigned an industrial use case to solve on emulators and quantum hardware provided by one of a breadth of technology providers. Teams are allocated by the NQCC based on skills and domain preferences. However, we welcome your views, and recommendations for pairing with a specific quantum provider for the use case provided. Information on the use cases and training on accessing quantum computers will be provided to the teams ahead of time through a private repository and communication channel. During the hackathon, mentors from industry and the quantum providers will support the teams. The event will close with a judging panel scoring the proposed solutions. 

More information about this year’s hackathon can be found on the landing page here: https://www.nqcc.ac.uk/uk-quantum-hackathon-2024/ 

Participation 

We are delighted to invite you to submit your full use case to the NQCC’s 2024 UK Quantum Hackathon.  

End users are welcome to submit multiple use cases. Depending on the level of engagement, a selection process may be used to determine which use cases to take forward (please see selection criteria below). However, the NQCC endeavours to include the majority of use cases. You will receive confirmation on whether your use case has been selected by 17th June 2024. If your use case is not selected for this hackathon, it may be selected (with your permission) for future hackathon style events. Use case submissions are limited to non-defence applications.  

Successful organisations must provide one to two mentors per use case for the in-person event on 22nd and 23rd July and optionally 24th July. All costs associated with administration, accommodation, meals and the venue hire will be covered by the NQCC. We also request that after the event end-user mentors provide a short (200-300 words) technical summary of their team’s work to form part of the hackathon technical report, and complete the NQCC’s feedback form following the event.  

If you would like to participate, please provide the following information using this form by June 10th 2024. 

1. A confirmation of commitment to participate, including the ability for one mentor from your organisation to be present for at least the first two days of the event  

2. Agreement with terms and conditions 

3. One (or more) use-case problem(s) 

Use case selection criteria 

Use cases will be assessed on the following criteria:   

1. The suitability of the use case for the hackathon format, including:  

• Relevance to quantum computing,  

• Feasibility on the available quantum computing resource (access to emulation across hardware platforms and hardware on early quantum systems), and  

•  Suitability for making meaningful progress in the timeframe of two full days of technical work  

2. The anticipated societal and economic impacts of the use case and opportunities for delivering benefit. For example, improving resource allocation in a public service, accelerating R&D capabilities, producing more accurate results, etc.  

3. The technical interest of the use case, including its novelty, and the opportunity for advancing learning of participants and furthering QC understanding and knowledge  

4. The quality of the proposal, including definition of the problem, background information, structure, and demonstrating a responsible innovation approach  

Please note that use cases are limited to non-defence applications.  

In addition, the NQCC aims to have a diverse range of sectors, problem domains, hardware implementation, and organisations represented at the hackathon. Fit with the overall portfolio of use cases may also be taken into consideration for the final selection process.  

Submission 

To submit a use case, please complete the use case competition form via the link below. 

UKRI Privacy notice:

When you sign up to attend a UKRI event we use your information to contact you for feedback, research and evaluation, related to the activity.

For more information: See UKRI privacy notice

What happens next

Thank you for submitting your details! You will be contacted following the close of the use case competition on 3rd June.