KIERAN GILBERT: Let's look at another development today. This is a government announcement of its Quantum Strategy. With me is the Industry Minister, Ed Husic, who is leading this. You've described for our viewers who are tuning in and asking what is quantum computing? You've said it's a game-changer. Why do you see it in those terms as a game-changer? When it comes to not just tech? This has obviously got huge ramifications.

ED HUSIC, MINISTER FOR INDUSTRY AND SCIENCE: Well, the computational power of quantum computers, it basically outstrips anything that what you're used to as a computer today can do. There are a lot of things that computers can do, but there are some really hard things that they just don't have enough grunt to be able to do so. And in quantum computing terms, in very broad ways, your current computers have an on and off switch, zeros and ones that are operated in ways in which they traffic the data through the system. Quantum computing has an on switch, an off switch an on off switch at the same time. It's all in those states, effectively allowing it to process data huge amounts very quickly. So, what that could do is open up, for instance, the discovery of new medicines way quicker, like we're talking potentially half a decade quicker than what we would do at the moment, relying on AI in classic computers and at less cost. Today, we're at Nomad Atomics out in Canberra here. They, with their quantum sensing equipment, can detect new mineral deposits that eluded humans that could be billions of value, and they can do it from a plane up high with the sensing to determine differences in gravity, that can make them think, okay, these are the likely deposits. The economic value of that to the country, and if we get there first in some of this, what it'll do for our industries? Securing jobs, generating value for the economy. These technologies, massive, but we got to get our act together on it.

KIERAN GILBERT: On the medicine front, you mentioned that and I guess if we think back to how quickly mankind or humankind came up with the vaccines, one of them, or a few of them led by women, so I should say this is a human endeavour. But the vaccines for COVID when it comes to cancer– Is quantum computing looking at things like cures for cancer?

ED HUSIC: Potentially. We have so much research talent in this country relative to the size of our population. The rest of the world really admires the talent we've got. We've been investing in this space since the late 50s and now it's time to turn that into something concrete and we're at that stage where we can, and people want to. And so our National Quantum Strategy, the first time a government's done this, it’s designed to get us organised so that if we need to be able to turn to that power, that computational power to discover new medicines or treatments for cancers and other things that we've got the ability to do so.

KIERAN GILBERT: So, how far away is it in terms of being able to be operational and these computers to be built?

ED HUSIC: So, depending on who you talk to, I mean, I sort of describe it this way it's so close you can almost touch it. It's in a matter of years that if we get these fault-tolerant quantum computers, that we will be able to access that and put it to work for industry, but also importantly for our AUKUS arrangements. The expectation is that we have the technological capability that we can bring to the table. 

Under pillar two of AUKUS, Quantum will be a big part of that. Some of our existing Australian firms are already being sought after by some of our strategic partners because they recognise the value of what these firms are doing on Australian soil and they want to get them elsewhere. So, what we've wanted to do with the National Reconstruction Fund, we've set aside a billion for critical technologies like Quantum that could be potentially supported. So, if we get our act together through the Quantum Strategy and all the work that it says we need to get done, we make the capital available and we invest in our people. We don't want firms to think that the only chance of success is to leave Australia. We need to be able to seize this moment for longer-term economic good of the country.

KIERAN GILBERT: Can we keep up with the likes of the United States, China and others on this?

ED HUSIC: Not if we are not organised. That's the big thing. If we don't signal the interest, we don't make the investment available and we don't organise ourselves, then we'll see that advantage further away. And so we're determined as a government, we said we're elected on a platform with the National Reconstruction Fund to transform and strengthen industries. That was a big thing. This is one example of an area where if we get it right, it'll be a big deal. And the weird thing, Kieran, is we often think with some of these things, oh, well, that's something that another country's got the capability to do and we'll leave it to them and then we'll just buy it back off them. 

We're actually at the point with the people and the talent and the money that we've got, if we get this right, we can be a world leader and we should.

KIERAN GILBERT: Well, we've had those opportunities before. Our R and D research and development history is extraordinary. You and I have discussed it before, whether it be from Wi-Fi to solar. There's an endless list of these great technologies that Australians have come up with, but not commercialised. How do you go about commercialising the gains that we make?

ED HUSIC: Yeah, and that's one of the pathways under this plan, is to look at the R and D commercialisation of quantum technologies and we do need to get better at that. It's not just a challenge that's confronting us, there are a lot of other countries that are trying to crack that as well, of moving what's being thought about and worked on in the university environment out in the commercial realm. So, we do need to do better. And our level of investment in R and D–

KIERAN GILBERT: –Is it like consortiums between universities and private sector? Is that sort of thing you're looking at?

ED HUSIC: Yeah. Some of it needs to look at that and how we get people thinking, particularly in a university concept, about if they've got an idea, how will this translate in a commercial sense, how we'll be able to produce or manufacture is ultimately what they're thinking of. But the amount of money that we've got to invest in this area is relative– we invest in R and D as a proportion of GDP, about 1.8 per cent when the OECD averages three. Got a lot of work to do, but if we do it, it's really important in terms of growing the economy and sharpening it and securing jobs long-term.

KIERAN GILBERT: Yeah, super exciting stuff. Quantum computing and the strategy launched today. Thanks so much for your time, Minister.

ED HUSIC: Good on you. Thank you.

ENDS