Quantum Week In Toronto: Highlights from IEEE, unitaryCON, IWQC, QRE and Beyond

This September, Toronto became the ultimate quantum hub. Learn how Xanadu helped welcome the global quantum community to the city.

By Lara Watson and Emily Nobes

This September, Toronto became the ultimate quantum hub. As the 2026 host of IEEE Quantum Week (IEEE QW), the premier international forum for quantum computing and engineering, the city was full of quantum experts, professionals, and enthusiasts from around the world.

Building community has always been a core part of Xanadu's mission. From September 13th–21st, we took as many chances as we could to do just that. Driving an action-packed week, our team delivered a keynote, multiple talks, and workshops at IEEE Quantum Week, proudly accepted the IEEE Quantum Technical Community 2026 Distinguished Synergy Award, and hosted three major gatherings at Xanadu headquarters: unitaryCON, and the 8th iterations of both the International Workshop on Quantum Compilation (IWQC) and the Workshop on Quantum Resource Estimation (QRE).

(Fun fact: Music by Isaac De Vlugt, Senior Quantum Scientist - Product at Xanadu!)

IEEE Quantum Week

On the first morning of IEEE QW, Rafal Janik, Xanadu’s Chief Operating Officer, delivered a keynote address, open to all 2,300 conference attendees. In his highly attended talk “Scaling Photonic Quantum Computing”, Rafal explored how photonics is uniquely positioned to scale quantum computing and Xanadu’s plans to bridge the gap between demonstration and full-scale implementation.

Rafal provided a comprehensive breakdown of our commercial roadmap and highlighted Backline, our recently launched, open-source, hardware-agnostic platform built for real-time quantum-classical integration. He explained how ultra-low-loss photonic chip packaging, fabrication, and design accelerate the path toward practical, utility-scale quantum computing, but emphasized that a complete software stack, developer tools, and practical applications remain crucial for making quantum computing truly useful.

Attended IEEE but couldn’t make that talk? See it here.

Photo credit: IEEE International Conference on Quantum Computing and Engineering (QCE)

Following this kickoff, nine Xanadu team members delivered and led 12 talks, workshops, panels, and sessions throughout the week. Topics ranged from “Accelerating Quantum Algorithm Design using PennyLane” (explored by Senior Quantum Software Developer Jay Soni at the Quantum Resource Estimation workshop) to “Bridging the Gap between Compiler Developers and Scientists” (under the guidance of Xanadu community experts Catalina Albornoz and Josh Izaac) to “Quantum and Generative AI for Financial Services” (with Xanadu Lead Quantum Scientist Stepan Fomichev).

We are also proud to be recipients of the IEEE Quantum Technical Community 2026 Distinguished Synergy Award, recognized “for pioneering an open quantum computing ecosystem through PennyLane, global education, collaborative research, and public-private partnerships that connect academia, industry, and government and accelerate progress toward practical quantum computing.”

Outside of the formal agenda, we had a blast engaging with attendees, hanging out in the Canadian Quantum Pavilion, and meeting members of the PennyLane community in person. Thanks to everyone who attended our talks, and engaged with us at IEEE QW!

Keynote photo credit: IEEE International Conference on Quantum Computing and Engineering (QCE)

The week was a whirlwind. As the programming and events of IEEE Quantum Week began to conclude, though, we were just getting started.

unitaryCON

From September 17th–19th, we had the pleasure of hosting and co-organizing unitaryCON 2026, an annual collaborative workshop by the Unitary Foundation.

unitaryCON is a place where the open-source community gathers to engage in discussion, share ongoing projects and research, and collaborate with like-minded individuals interested in open science and software.

On the final day of the workshop, attendees ventured out for a field trip to the University of Toronto. Home to the Center for Quantum Information and Quantum Control (CQIQC) and the annual undergraduate Q-SITE conference, U of T opened its doors for lab tours, campus photo-ops, and conversations with CQIQC director and Quantum Strategic Initiative Lead Anna Dyring and Q-SITE Chair Micheal Silver. As an added bonus, attendees got to hear a talk by Xanadu Research Engagement Lead and U of T alum, Daniel Nino.

unitaryCON is a special event (even dubbed by one participant as "the best conference of the year"), and we are proud to have played a part.

International Workshop on Quantum Compilation

Just as soon as unitaryCON came to a close, it was time to kick off the highly anticipated (oversold and with a 20+ person waitlist 🤯) IWQC 2026. This annual workshop gathers top researchers from quantum computing, electronic design automation, and compiler construction, and is facilitated by an international team of coordinators and organizers, including David Ittah, Senior Quantum Software Developer, at Xanadu.

The agenda spanned topics like fault-tolerance, scalable state preparation, and synthesis techniques, each of which represent some of the most prominent challenges in the industry.

The two-day workshop featured many exciting talks, which we got to take a front-row part in. “Beyond ‘Quantum 101’: an advanced educational content ecosystem for quantum compilation R&D” was delivered by Catalina Albornoz, Senior Research Engagement Manager at Xanadu. The talk explored how education can best support cutting-edge advancements and gave one participant their key takeaway from the entirety of IEEE QW: “The best software is the one that is used.”

International Workshop on Quantum Resource Estimation

Last but certainly not least was the one-day QRE workshop. Much like IWQC, QRE was organized by a team of professionals from around the world (including Danial Motlagh Lead Quantum Scientist at Xanadu ) and boasted an agenda centered around engaging discussions and knowledge exchange.

12 talks and eight poster presentations centered broadly around the challenging theme of the day: QRE for meaningful fault-tolerant algorithms and quantum computing architectures.

Quantum resource estimation is becoming a non-negotiable tool in the quantum algorithmist’s toolkit, and gatherings like these emphasize the community’s dedication to advancing QRE capabilities and applications in the hopes of achieving the industry’s goals.

IEEE Quantum Week and beyond in Toronto was eventful to say the least. As it came to an end, it was difficult to deny the sense of optimism for the future of the industry that was palpable throughout the jam-packed programming of the week.

As you look ahead to your next quantum event, here are two quick ways to stay involved:

• Join QHack 2026 (Oct 16–23): Register solo or as a team for our quantum coding championship. Take your shot at the biggest cash prize pool in QHack history!
• Shape the Ecosystem: Share your input in the Unitary Foundation’s annual survey by Oct 29.

Can’t fit either into the schedule, but want to keep in touch?

• Sign up for our Xanadu newsletter for monthly news on hardware, events, and career opportunities.
• Sign up for our PennyLane newsletter for open-source updates, demos, and tech breakthroughs.

Thanks again to everyone who made Xanadu HQ their home away from home for a few days; we look forward to the next time. -Team Xanadu