COMPANY

Our mission is to take quantum out of the lab and into the hands of humanity

Quantum computing will help solve some of humanity’s most significant challenges, from climate change to new drug discoveries. But its potential can only be unleashed if it is harnessed and incorporated into our day-to-day lives through enterprise-ready quantum solutions.

ABOUT US

OQC is a quantum-computing-as-a-service (QCaaS) company headquartered in the UK with an office in Japan

Founded in 2017, we are a global leader in quantum technology creating a brighter future enabled by quantum, by developing and building enterprise-ready, leading-edge quantum computers based on superconducting qubits and our patented Coaxmon chip.

By pushing technological boundaries, we were the first commercially available quantum computer in the UK, the first Quantum Compute-as-a-Service company in Europe, and the first in the world to deploy a quantum computer to a commercial data centre including the integration with high performance compute.

As part of our mission to put quantum into the hands of humanity, we have put enterprise-ready quantum at our customers fingertips through incredible technology such as OQC Toshiko: a powerful and secure 32-qubit quantum computing platform, which is now in private preview and coming soon on public cloud and data centre fabric.

At OQC, we endeavour to cultivate love, inspire innovation, embrace competition, embody humility and ensure execution, in everything we do. Our values remain unwavering at our core as we continue to expand and act as a crucial foundation as we help change the world for the better, with quantum.

FUNDRAISING

Fundraising for a quantum future

OQC brings together a team of quantum scientists and business experts to deliver world-leading quantum technology solutions. In order to this, in 2022 OQC achieved a $48M Series A raise – the UK’s largest ever Series A in quantum computing at the time. We utilise their funding to invest in and hire exceptional talent from around the globe, now boasting a team of over 100.

In 2023, we began our Series B investment raise, led by SBI Investment, Japan’s premier venture capital fund. Existing investors, Oxford Science Enterprises (OSE),University of Tokyo Edge Capital Partners (UTEC), Lansdowne Partners, and OTIF, acted by manager Oxford Investment Consultants (OIC) are also participating.

OUR EXEC TEAM

From some of the best technical minds in the UK to world-renowned researchers and investors – find out more about the OQC team developing quantum computing to think bigger, create faster, and see further as we solve the world’s most pressing problems.

Gerald Mullally
Interim CEO

Gerald was responsible for spearheading OQC’s Series B investment raise and has led OQC’s commercial growth through strategic partnerships with the world’s largest private and public sector organisations.

Gerald has spent two decades delivering technology solutions for customers across life sciences, financial services, energy and defence at leading companies including Accenture and PwC.

He was also a Director at the UK Prime Minister’s Office and Cabinet Office, responsible for leading programmes of communications capability building for governments in Africa, Eastern Europe, Middle East and Asia.

Simon Phillips
CTO

Simon Phillips is the CTO of Oxford Quantum Circuits (OQC), Europe’s leading quantum computing company.

Simon is an experienced technology executive and seasoned entrepreneur, with experience in setting up and scaling technology businesses. From fundraising, to scaling internationally, Simon has a deep understanding of the fast-paced technology sector and demonstrates critical understanding of the quantum space, OQC’s technical capabilities and roadmap.

Dr Peter Leek
Founder & CSO

Peter founded OQC in 2017 and is a pioneer in the field of quantum computing, particularly known for his contributions to superconducting quantum circuits. With a PhD from the University of Cambridge, and postdoctoral research experience from ETH Zurich in the science of circuit QED, he has led his own research group at the University of Oxford since 2012, where OQC’s core IP was first developed. Peter is also a co-investigator in the UK’s national quantum computing research hub, where he continues to play a prominent role in the national programme.

Nikki Cooper
General Counsel and Company Secretary at OQC

Nikki is the General Counsel at OQC. She brings over 15 years of experience to the team including Chartered Financier, Chartered Company Secretary ACG and General Counsel. Her varied role supports the company through complex strategic decisions and processes, including our current Series B investment raise. Nikki is an Associate Member ACG of the The Chartered Governance Institute UK & Ireland and a licensed professional solicitor accredited by the Solicitors Regulation Authority.

Board

Jack Boyer
Chairman of the Board

Jack brings a wealth of experience in scaling deep-tech and engineering companies to OQC and is currently serving as Chair of Royce Hydrogen Accelerator, Bristol University and Non-Executive Director at Bela Holdings AG. Jack was recognised with an OBE in 2015 for his contributions to science and engineering and will be working closely with OQC’s Board and leadership team to build on the company’s successes, and accelerate our impact on the global stage.

Nick Dixon-Clegg
Director

Nick leads the Independent Investments Team at OSE, working exclusively with established portfolio companies. Prior to OSE, Nick was an Investment Principal at Valiance, a MedTech-focused venture capital firm. He has also held roles as a private equity investor at Nordic Capital and as an investment banker at Bank of America Merrill Lynch.

Lenny Chin
Director

Lenny (Kayo) Chin joined UTEC, a major university based VC fund in Japan, in July 2021 and focuses on investments in seed / early-stage startups in the fields of AI, quantum computing, and other disruptive technologies. He currently serves on the boards of OQC, RICOS, forest, PaylessGate and issin. Previously, he worked at Lenovo and PwC Advisory LLC in Tokyo, Japan.

Tomoyuki Nii
Director

Tomoyuki Nii is Director at SBI Investment Co. Ltd, Japan’s premier VC fund, where he is in charge of all the fund’s overseas investments. He focuses on Fintech, AI, Blockchain, IoT, Robotics, Healthtech, Sharing economy. He has set up several Joint venture companies between SBI group and portfolio companies in the area of Fintech, Blockchain and Mobile applications.

George Mills
Director

George Mills leads direct deeptech investments at British Patient Capital, a UK sovereign VC fund and the most active growth stage investor in deeptech and life sciences in the UK. He has been investing in scale up companies since 2011 and has been a co-founder of three startups. He is a CFA charterholder and a Kauffman Foundation Global Scholar, and holds an MEng in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Bristol.