Deep-tech company Emergence Quantum, spun out of the University of Sydney in 2025, has announced a partnership with hyperscale data-centre specialist AirTrunk to develop a new generation of data-centre cooling technologies to reduce energy and water use while supporting the development of quantum computing.

Cryogenic cooling can significantly improve the speed and energy-efficiency of today’s silicon computer chips, enabling faster computation with less power. The same cryo-technology is also foundational to many futuristic computing systems, including quantum.

Emergence Quantum co-founder and CEO Professor David Reilly said: “It’s been understood for decades that computers run significantly faster and more efficiently in the cold, but there are challenges and costs to cooling that have so-far limited this approach to niche applications. The scale of data centres and tiny size of transistors today changes all that – the cryo-computing epoch has arrived.”

Beyond the increased performance of hardware, the two companies will work closely together on cryogenic technologies capable of reducing data centres’ cooling water needs while enabling gigawatt power storage to leverage intermittent supplies of renewable energy. Cryo-cooling offers further promise in the context of carbon capture.

Cryogenics is the physics of operating devices at temperatures below -150 degrees Celsius. Many quantum computing systems operate far below this, at temperatures approaching absolute zero (-273.15 degrees). This means quantum engineers can bring much needed expertise to the next generation of data centres.

AirTrunk Vice-President for Innovation and Intelligence, Jose Castaneda, said the partnership is part of a commitment to continuously explore new approaches and technologies that drive the future of data centres and foster Australia’s technological leadership.

“We are continuously redefining data centres with cutting-edge technologies that improve performance, efficiency and sustainability. As digital demand grows, our responsibility is not only to provide the secure and resilient infrastructure our customers and communities rely on, but to find new ways to deliver that infrastructure more efficiently.

“This partnership with EQ challenges the status quo and is a great example of how data centres can act as broader enablers of innovation in our communities.”

Dr Arman Siahvashi, Emergence Quantum Head of Cryogenics, said: “Australia has a unique opportunity to leverage its world-leading energy export expertise, built through large-scale cryogenic LNG, alongside emerging liquid hydrogen capabilities, abundant renewables, and deep experience in clean energy and decarbonisation.

“Quantum at scale will require cryogenics at scale,” Dr Siahvashi said, who is also an ARC DECRA Research Fellow in the Faculty of Engingeering. “By bridging expertise across the energy and quantum sectors, we can enable next-generation quantum data centres and future-proof Australia’s leading position in AI, quantum and clean technology.”

The partnership brings together deep expertise in cryogenic computing, thermal engineering, and quantum technologies, data centre architecture and real-world techno-economic models that can establish the performance opportunities for cryo-data centres. The collaboration is part of AirTrunk’s broader goal to build quantum-ready data centre infrastructureable to embed cryogenic cooling into overall data centre campus setup.

Professor Thomas Ohki, co-founder and CTO of Emergence Quantum, has been working on various cryogenic computing platforms for decades: “For us, cryogenic data centres are an inevitable reality – this cooling technology is needed for high-speed efficient silicon chips, superconducting logic, and ultimately quantum computing. All flavours of qubits need cryogenics one way or another.”

Emergence Quantum was spun out of the University of Sydney in 2025 and the University is also the recipient of a $100 million donation from the Khuda Family Foundation established by AirTrunk Founder and CEO Robin Khuda.

University of Sydney Vice-Chancellor and President Professor Mark Scott said the partnership demonstrated the strength of local expertise in cryogenics, quantum technologies and hyperscale data centres. “This ambitious partnership between AirTrunk and Emergence Quantum promises to bring about a new phase in data centre technology, one that is focused on hitting environmental milestones,” he said.

“Here we have two organisations with a strong connection to the University of Sydney turning research into commercially significant technology.”

Beyond the technology itself, the partnership has potential to strengthen capability in next-generation digital infrastructure by bringing together local expertise in cryogenics, quantum technologies and hyperscale data centres. It reflects AirTrunk’s broader ambition to create shared value through the infrastructure it delivers – supporting innovation, capability and opportunities that can contribute to more resilient economies and communities.

About AirTrunk

AirTrunk is a leading hyperscale data centre specialist delivering essential infrastructure to scale the Asia-Pacific & Middle East’s digital future, accelerated by cloud and artificial intelligence.

About Emergence Quantum

Emergence Quantum is a commercial research and development company building the integrated hardware and foundational technology needed to scale quantum and next generation computing systems. It is led by world-class founders David Reilly and Thomas Ohki, who combine deep scientific credentials with significant operating experience across large corporate, defence and government environments.

Declaration

Professor David Reilly and Professor Thomas Ohki are the co-founders of Emergence Quantum and retain a controlling share in the company. The University of Sydney maintains a stake in the company and continues to support its development.