Chicago – July 27, 2024
In what could be a transformational development for Chicago, California-based tech company PsiQuantum is investing billions in the long dormant South Works site in a quest to build the world’s first commercially viable quantum computer.
The project promises to boost Chicago as a leader in the nascent quantum computing field, while revitalizing the city’s Southeast Side, which has struggled economically since U.S. Steel closed its once massive plant more than 30 years ago.
Mayor Brandon Johnson, who met with top PsiQuantum executives several months ago to pitch the site and the city, said it is significant that a revolutionary new industry is set to spring up on grounds that built the material to create Chicago’s skyline during the last century.
“We were the first to shift the economy when steel was being used to grow industry,” Johnson told the Tribune. “Now here we are. I think it’s very fitting that Chicago is upfront and on the cutting edge of what it means to transform our global economy.”
