Our commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion

Quantum Computing, like Computer Science and Physics, has some work to do when it comes to diversity, equity and inclusion. People from groups that are underrepresented in tech, such as women, Latinx+, Native American+, and Black+, are faced with challenges in their education and careers that their peers in majority groups do not face, from equal access to educational opportunities to clear pathways to senior leadership. Aware of these trends, we are taking active measures to turn things around both in the wider Quantum Information Science community and here at Google.

As Google’s Quantum AI team continues to grow, we have a responsibility to open new pathways and improve access to technical careers for people from underrepresented groups. We are committed to growing our efforts to make this happen.

Initiatives and opportunities

We are at the beginning of our journey to improve diversity, equity, and inclusion within our team, and we know that we have a long way to go. We recognize that in order to make a difference, we need to partner with academia and the quantum computing industry to identify, nurture, progress, and retain the future quantum workforce. Building a diverse, equitable and inclusive quantum computing team allows us to also build a fair future for all.

Our team is always looking to expand our impact and commitment, from growing existing programs to creating new ones. Our initiatives are a subset of the overall programs at Google aiming to improve diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility. Through these efforts we hope to bring a diverse range of ideas, perspectives, and experiences to our work in quantum computing. Listed are the specific programs that we are engaging with today in order to improve diversity, equity, and inclusion within the Google Quantum AI team, as well as within the wider quantum community.

Internships

The Google Quantum AI team seeks to incorporate equitable hiring practices when selecting interns. Internships are critical to our team in several ways: 1) Our interns bring a diversity of perspectives and experiences to Google and the Quantum AI team, and we believe that many of them will eventually become great employees. 2) We give interns responsibility from the very start, and we expect them to have an impact right away. Working on the Quantum AI team means tackling the toughest problems in science and technology and our interns are able to perform open and highly impactful research and development, providing them with more opportunities to enter highly coveted graduate programs and industry jobs.

APS Bridge Program

The Google Quantum AI team partners with the American Physical Society’s Bridge Program to help support students from historically underrepresented backgrounds to pursue their graduate studies in quantum information and related sciences. We also provide mentoring to APS Bridge Program participants to help them continue graduate education.

Supplier Diversity

The Quantum AI team continues to focus on supplier diversity. We believe bringing people together with a broad range of perspectives, ideas, and experiences leads to better products and services for Google and our users. Our Supplier Diversity program is designed to connect more business owners who are members of groups that have been historically underrepresented in tech with opportunities within Google, while helping them grow. We are looking for eligible suppliers in hardware and software to help on our mission to build a useful quantum computer.

Conference Sponsorship

Google Quantum AI is committed to supporting existing initiatives to promote diversity, equity, and inclusion through sponsorship of key technical conferences and workshops. By partnering and running Google-sponsored conferences focused on communities historically excluded from the tech industry, we aim to develop and hire future Googlers and build a company that reflects the varied backgrounds, communities, and mindsets of our users.