
USask’s Team quanTA Wins First Place at GenQ Quantum Hackathon!
Team quanTA brings hope a win for USask!
At Platform Calgary, over 75 participants from across Canada and beyond gathered for the GenQ Quantum Hackathon, where they tackled real-world energy challenges using quantum computing. USask’s Team quanTA, led by Prof. Steven Rayan from the Department of Mathematics and Statistics and Director of quanTA, earned first place in the Energy Grid Optimization challenge. The team — Ahmed Mahmoud, Mahmud Azam, Jayneel Parikh, and Luis Pablo Gonzalez Dominguez — used QuEra’s neutral-atom quantum processors to identify key regions in electrical grids. Their solution, built on advanced mathematics and quantum algorithms, can be applied to other distributed networks such as telecommunications. Their innovation, hard work, and dedication brought home a major win for USask.
Congratulations to Prof. Rayan and Team quanTA!