Episode 46: A VC’s POV: Investing in Quantum

Venture investor Russ Fein moved to Colorado for family reasons – landing in the heart of one of America’s biggest quantum ecosystems was an unexpected bonus. This new homebase was the perfect place to pursue his pandemic research project: quantum tech. Russ tracks advances in quantum hardware and software on his Substack newsletter, The Quantum Leap, and guides investment decisions at Corporate Fuel. Russ is also CFO and a board member at Colorado-based Vescent. He spoke with The Quantum Spin about why he likes investing in the “picks and shovels” opportunities in the quantum sector. 00:00 Welcome to Quantum Spin00:34 Meet Russ Fein01:08 How Russ Found Quantum02:46 Inside The Quantum Leap03:39 How Investors Evaluate Quantum05:53 Why Vescent Won Him Over08:58 Vescent Tech Lasers to Clocks11:16 Investor Misconceptions13:31 Colorado Quantum Hub16:55 Policy Funding and Supply Chain19:14 Benchmarking Quantum Computers23:10 Pitching Quantum to Investors26:08 Error Correction to Watch27:34 Closing and Where to ListenHost Veronica Combs is a quantum tech editor, writer and PR professional. She manages public relations for quantum computing clients at HKA Marketing Communications, the #1 agency in quantum tech PR. Veronica joined HKA from TechRepublic and has covered technology, healthcare and business strategy for more than 15 years.Connect with Veronica on LinkedIn:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/veronicacombs/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Connect with HKA Marketing Communications on LinkedIn athttps://www.linkedin.com/company/hka-inc--public-relations/ or on our website https://hkamarcom.com/