Simon Phillips is a seasoned technology leader and entrepreneur with decades of experience spanning executive, financial, and technical roles across multiple industries. As Chief Technology Officer of Oxford Quantum Circuits (OQC), Simon is at the forefront of pioneering breakthroughs in quantum computing, shaping the technology’s transition from academic research into... Read more
Simon Phillips is a seasoned technology leader and entrepreneur with decades of experience spanning executive, financial, and technical roles across multiple industries. As Chief Technology Officer of Oxford Quantum Circuits (OQC), Simon is at the forefront of pioneering breakthroughs in quantum computing, shaping the technology’s transition from academic research into globally deployed, commercial systems.
At OQC, Simon has led the transformation of qubit technology from its origins as a university spinout into a scalable, full-stack hardware platform. His vision has been instrumental in guiding the company’s growth from a small team to more than 150 specialists worldwide. Under his leadership alongside a comprehensive c-suite, OQC has expanded internationally, establishing a strong presence in Japan and successfully deploying quantum systems abroad. He has also helped to champion a groundbreaking strategy to integrate quantum computing into co-location data centres, setting a new benchmark for practical, accessible, and enterprise-ready quantum solutions.
Beyond his technical leadership, Simon brings significant experience in strategic growth and investment. He has supported the financial and technical due diligence processes that secured sustainable funding for deep tech innovation, aligning investors with OQC’s long-term roadmap. Equally important is his commitment to talent development, mentoring researchers and engineers as they advance into leadership positions and cultivating a resilient, future-focused technical team.
Simon’s career prior to quantum computing highlights his cross-disciplinary expertise. He has served as CEO, CFO, and CTO across multiple ventures, including leading roles at 22cans, FairPlay Media, and Gusto Games Ltd. This breadth of experience has given him a unique perspective at the intersection of technology, business, and strategy, an approach that underpins his leadership at OQC.
Today, Simon is driving OQC’s mission to unlock the potential of quantum computing for industry and society. His blend of entrepreneurial vision, technical depth, and global perspective ensures that OQC remains at the leading edge of one of the most transformative technologies of our time.
This talk explores how quantum computing is moving from experimental systems into a new logical era with real-world applications. With the global data centre market projected to reach nearly $585 billion by 2032, the talk highlights the critical role that integration into established data centre infrastructure will play in scaling...
The talk outlines the shift from the physical era of quantum computing, characterised by increasing qubit counts but high error rates, into the logical era, where error-corrected systems unlock reliable, scalable performance. The talk emphasises that this transition marks the point at which quantum moves beyond scientific breakthrough...