Blond & Quantum

Blond & Quantum

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Blond & Quantum episodes

  • AI Trading Agents Are Beating Hedge Funds | Yianni Gamvros, Quantum Signals (Startup Series #6)

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    The top hedge funds just dropped billions on AI compute. The other 95%? They're still using 10-year-old models.

    Yianni Gamvros, CEO and founder of Quantum Signal, joins Eva Galant on Blond & Quantum to talk about the quiet revolution in intraday trading — and why most firms are already losing.

    Listen to find out:
    📍 Why Jane Street spent $6B on compute (and what it means for everyone else)
    📍 The 7.5% edge our signals delivered in Q1
    📍 Why we built a classical solution first (quantum comes later)
    📍 When AI agents will start trading against each other
    📍 The "picks and shovels" strategy for the AI gold rush

    No PhD required. Just real talk about money, markets, and machine learning.

    🎙️ Guest: Yianni Gamvros | CEO & Founder, Quantum Signal
     🎧 Host: Eva | Blond & Quantum

    If you enjoyed this episode, please rate, review, and share — more conversations with global quantum leaders are coming soon.

     #quantumsignal #aitrading #fintech #quantfunds #generativeai #intradaytrading #blondandquantum #hedgefunds #algorithmictrading #machinelearning


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    53 min
  • Why the 'Boring' Quantum Computer Changes Everything | Thien-An Nguyen, ORCA (Startup Series #3)

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    Think quantum is still stuck in the lab? Think again.

    Thien-An Nguyen, CTO of Orca Computing, joins Eva Galant on Blond & Quantum to talk about what happens when you stop hyping the future and start shipping hardware today.

    Listen to find out:
    📍 Why "how many qubits?" is the least relevant question you can ask
    📍 How room-temperature photonic systems fit into existing data centers
    📍 The truth about hybrid quantum-AI (it's already running)
    📍 Why Orca prices its systems an order of magnitude lower than competitors
    📍 The moment quantum becomes truly useful — when it's boring

    No PhD required. Just real talk from a CTO building the future of information processing.

    🎙️ Guest: Thien-An Nguyen | CTO, Orca Computing
     🎧 Host: Eva | Blond & Quantum

    If you enjoyed this episode, please rate, review, and share more conversations with global quantum leaders are coming soon.

    #quantumcomputing #orcacomputing #deeptech #photonics #quantumAI #blondandquantum #quantumhardware #innovation #datacenter #quantumtechnology

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    42 min
  • Shrinking Particle Accelerators and X-Ray Lasers | Jerome Paye, TAU Systems (Startup Series #2)

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    In this episode of Blond & Quantum, host Eva Galant sits down with Jerome Paye, Co-Founder and CEO of TAU Systems a Texas-based deep-tech startup building compact particle accelerators and soft X-ray lasers ⚡🔬. 

    TAU's technology miniaturizes what normally requires kilometer-long government facilities with applications ranging from space radiation testing ☢️ to next-generation semiconductor lithography 💡🔩

    Topics discussed:
    📍What TAU Systems actually builds (explained without a physics degree)
    📍Why Moore's Law needs new light sources to continue
    📍How space radiation testing works — and why demand is exploding
    📍The difference between conventional accelerators and laser-plasma acceleration
    📍TAU's business model: service first, then sell the machines
    📍The long-term vision: affordable particle accelerators for universities and 📍discovery

    Expect honesty, insight, and a touch of humor (and maybe a brief cameo from Eva’s very real, very curious Schrödinger’s cat 🐈‍⬛).

    🎧Guest: Jerome Paye | Co-Founder & CEO, TAU Systems
    🎙️Host: Eva | Blond & Quantum


    #Blond&Quantum #deeptech  #spacetechnology #semiconductor  #particleaccelerator 

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    42 min
  • The Quantum Race Nobody Is Talking About | Bill Vass, Booz Allen Hamilton (Ep. 6)

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    Bill Vass, CTO of Booz Allen Hamilton, joins Eva on Blond & Quantum to separate signal from noise in quantum.

    Bill built Amazon Braket. He runs thousands of engineers working on quantum, AI, and national security. And he has some surprising takes on what's real — and what's not.

    Listen to find out:
    📍Why a motion sensor and a ceiling light once broke a quantum machine
    📍One material science breakthrough that quantum could unlock
    📍The football field-sized machines nobody is talking about
    📍What every CEO should do in the next 12 months
    📍The story behind the first entanglement of two quantum computers across 100km of fiber

    No PhD required. Just honest conversation.

    🎙️ Guest: Bill Vass | CTO, Booz Allen Hamilton
    🎧 Host: Eva | Blond & Quantum
     
    If you enjoyed this conversation, don’t forget to like, subscribe, and share — more episodes with global leaders in quantum are coming soon.
     
    #quantumcomputing  #boozallen  #deeptech  #quantumsensing  #BlondAndQuantum #BillVass #innovation #quantumtechnology

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    50 min
  • Will Europe Lose the Quantum Race? | Prof. Eleni Diamanti, PCQT (Ep. 5)

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    In this episode of Blond & Quantum, recorded on World Quantum Day, I sit down with Professor Eleni Diamanti — a rare force who moves seamlessly between fundamental research, national quantum strategy, and deep-tech entrepreneurship.

    Eleni is a head of one of France's major quantum technologies hubs (PCQT), and co-founder of Welinq — a quantum memory startup. She also served as Vice-Chair of the European Quantum Technologies Flagship strategy advisory board.

    We explore:

    • Whether Europe's fragmentation is a weakness or a hidden strength — and why she believes the continent has too many quantum startups
    • The timeline for a real quantum internet (2030) vs. a commercially valuable quantum computer (2035)
    • The critical difference between post-quantum cryptography and quantum communication — math versus physics
    • What she learned going from academia to co-founding a startup, and why she believes modular quantum computing will beat monolithic designs
    • What she would do with €1 billion to deploy in quantum today

    Plus, Eleni shares the one thing the industry believes that is probably wrong — and why she is "all for regulation" of emerging technologies.

    🎙️ Guest: Professor Eleni Diamanti | PCQT, Welinq

    🎧 Host: Eva | Blond & Quantum

    If you enjoyed this conversation, don't forget to like, subscribe, and share — more episodes with global leaders in quantum are coming soon.



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    1 hr 1 min
  • Designing Fault-Tolerant Quantum Computers | Ish Dhand, QC Design (Startup Series #1)

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    In this episode of Blond & Quantum, I sit down with Ish Dhand, Founder and CEO of QC Design — a startup building the essential design automation (EDA) layer for fault-tolerant quantum computers.

    We dive deep into why designing scalable, error-corrected quantum computers has become the industry's biggest bottleneck. Ish explains how QC Design is turning 30 years of academic research into production software, allowing hardware teams to simulate 20+ hardware imperfections at once — something open-source tools cannot do. We also explore why QC Design competes with in-house teams (not other startups), how they achieved product-market fit in just six months, and why they are already cash flow positive.

    We also explore:

    • What the "EDA layer" means for quantum (and why Cadence is the blueprint)
    • The difference between logical qubits and logical sockets
    • Why hiring 20 PhDs is hard to do — and how software replaces them
    • How QC Design works across all hardware platforms (photonic, trapped ion, neutral atom, spin, superconducting)
    • The 3–5 year roadmap to 100+ logical qubits solving transformative problems
    • The real risk: what happens if no hardware platform reaches fault tolerance
    • Ish's advice for anyone wanting to become a quantum founder today

    🎙️ Guest: Ish Dhand | Founder & CEO, QC Design

    🎧 Host: Eva | Blond & Quantum

    If you enjoyed this conversation, don’t forget to like, subscribe, and share — more episodes with global leaders in quantum are coming soon.

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    32 min
  • Quantum Advantage and Real-World Use Cases | Michael Cuthbert, NQCC (Ep. 4)

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    In this episode of Blonde and Quantum, I sit down with Michael Cuthbert, Director of the UK's National Quantum Computing Centre (NQCC) — the organisation established by the British government to shape and develop the quantum industry across the United Kingdom.

    We dive deep into the UK's quantum journey, from its pioneering 2014 national programme to the latest £1 billion government commitment. Michael shares insights on the NQCC's testbed programme (seven quantum computers across five qubit modalities), real-world use cases in healthcare, finance, and logistics, and the critical question of whether the UK can stay ahead in the global quantum race.

    We also explore:

    • The structure behind the UK's regional quantum hubs
    • What quantum advantage really means (and why it matters)
    • How companies can achieve quantum readiness today
    • What CEOs should do to prepare for the quantum era
    • And Michael's personal take on the future of quantum in healthcare

    Plus, I make a rather memorable mispronunciation of Oxford Ionics — twice. 🙈 My sincerest apologies to Michael and the team!

    🎙️ Guest: Michael Cuthbert | Director, National Quantum Computing Centre (NQCC)

    🎧 Host: Eva Galant | Founder, investor, and creator of Blond & Quantum

    If you enjoyed this conversation, don’t forget to like, subscribe, and share — more episodes with global leaders in quantum are coming soon.

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    58 min
  • Inside a $260M Quantum Fund: Investing in Quantum Early | Olivier Tonneau, Quantonation (Ep. 3)

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    In this episode of Blond & Quantum, Eva sits down with Olivier Tonneau from Quantonation to unpack what it really takes to build — and back — a global quantum ecosystem.

    Fresh off closing more than $260M for Fund II, Olivier shares what this milestone signals not just for Quantonation, but for the entire deep-tech and quantum landscape. We go back to 2018, when investing in quantum was still considered niche and risky, and explore what gave Quantonation the conviction to move early while others hesitated.

    We discuss first-mover advantages, competitive dynamics among quantum investors, and where the strongest global startup momentum is emerging today. Olivier also reveals which types of quantum companies are scaling fastest, what business models are already working despite early-stage hardware, and how startups are generating real traction now — not in some distant future.

    The conversation dives into the critical triangle between governments, venture capital, and startups, and why coordinated ecosystems — not just breakthrough physics — determine who wins the quantum race. Olivier also explains why Quantonation builds companies through venture studios across multiple countries, and how those startups differ from traditional founders.

    Finally, we look ahead five years: which industries quantum will disrupt first, what shifts investors should watch closely, and whether there’s a deal Olivier wishes he could still invest in.

    If you want a clear, insider view of where quantum is actually heading — beyond hype — this episode is your roadmap.

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    38 min
  • The Global Quantum Race: US, China and Europe | André König, GQI (Ep. 2)

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    In this episode of Blond & Quantum, Eva sits down with André König — Co-founder & CEO of Global Quantum Intelligence — for a high-level, honest breakdown of the real geopolitical landscape of quantum technology.

    From the accelerating race between the US and China, to surprising emerging players like the Philippines, Saudi Arabia, Israel, and Singapore, André shares what governments are quietly planning behind closed doors — and why quantum has become a national security priority around the globe.

    Together, they dive into:

    • the global quantum race and shifting power dynamics
    • how different regions invest (and why Europe is struggling)
    • national security and the role of government in quantum
    • early industry adopters and what’s actually happening beyond POCs
    • where disruption will hit first — and how executives can prepare
    • why companies that ignore quantum today may not survive the next 3–5 years

    Whether you’re an executive, investor, policymaker, or simply quantum-curious, this episode offers a rare, unfiltered view into the forces shaping the future of the quantum industry.

    🎙️ Guest: André Koenig
    Co-founder & CEO, Global Quantum Intelligence

    🎧 Host: Eva Galant
    Founder, investor, and creator of Blond & Quantum

    If you enjoyed this conversation, don’t forget to like, subscribe, and share — more episodes with global leaders in quantum are coming soon.

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    46 min
  • What Is Quantum Computing? A Business Guide | Wasiq Bokhari, Pasqal (Ep. 1)

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    Welcome to the premiere of Blond & Quantum — the podcast where we break down quantum technology into real-world business impact. No Schrödinger equation required.

    In this first episode, host Eva Galant sits down with Dr. Wasiq Bokhari — Executive Chairman of Pasqal, serial entrepreneur, investor, and one of the early pioneers shaping the quantum industry. Together, they dive into what it truly takes to build and scale a quantum company, from the physics lab to global markets.

    They discuss:
     💡 What is quantum computing?

      ✨ The turning point that made Wasiq believe quantum was ready for commercialization

     🌍 The evolving landscape of quantum investment and Europe’s role in it

     💭 And yes — how to stay human while working on technologies that could redefine reality itself.

    Expect honesty, insight, and a touch of humor (and maybe a brief cameo from Eva’s very real, very curious Schrödinger’s cat 🐈‍⬛).

    🎧 Tune in to Episode 1 of Blond & Quantum — where business meets physics and bold ideas meet real impact.

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    33 min

About Blond & Quantum

From the publisher's feed

Quantum computing explained for business leaders, investors and founders — without the equations.


Blond & Quantum is a conversation series with the people building,…