Quantum Workshop

Arkansas Quantum Summit

Preparing Arkansas for the Quantum Era
in AI and Cybersecurity

Date: December 3, 2026
Location: UA Little Rock, EIT Building (Auditorium)
Co-Hosts: Quantum Foundry and IonQ
Audience: State Government, Economic Development,
Industry, Higher Education, and 9-12 Students

Event Overview

The Emerging Analytics Center (EAC) and the School of Computer and Information Sciences at UA Little Rock invites participants to a one day summit focused on information regarding Quantum Computing and how it will impact the future and economy of Arkansas.

The primary objective is to inform our government and industrial partners about the emerging quantum computing world.

What to Expect

  • Quantum Computing 101: An introduction to quantum computing, networking, security, and sensing, including their industrial and societal impacts.
  • Statewide Focus: learn about the Arkansas Quantum Computing Working Group
  • Strategies: Quantum Security and technical focus for faculty
  • Working Session: A hands on session with a focus of 9-12 year students

Summit Agenda

Morning Session

8:00 AM – 1:00 PM | Government & Industrial Partners

Time Activity
8:00 AM – 9:00 AM
Registration & Networking
EIT Lobby

Attendees arrive, network, and explore interactive quantum hardware demo tables sponsored by IonQ and Carahsoft.

9:00 AM – 9:30 AM
Welcome & Framing Remarks
EIT Auditorium

Speakers: Tanzel Karabacak, Brian Berry, Ahmed Halimeh (UA Little Rock)

Opening remarks from UA Little Rock, and the Arkansas Economic Development Commision (AEDC) to outline the summit's goals. Spotlight on the UA Little Rock-led Statewide Quantum Computing Working Group.

9:30 AM – 10:15 AM
Session 1: Exploring Quantum Technology, Workforce, Research & Economic Opportunity
EIT Auditorium

Speaker: Ryan Harring (IonQ)

Non-technical overview of the four-domain quantum platform (compute, networking, security, sensing). IonQ presents the "time-to-usable-solution" timeline and its broader societal and industrial impacts.

10:15 AM – 11:00 AM
Session 2: The Quantum Economy and Workforce Development
EIT Auditorium

Panel: Ahmed Halimeh (UA Little Rock -moderator); Mark Forbis (Dainamiq), Aaron Duval (UA Little Rock)

Introduction to the Arkansas Fintech community An economic-development keynote showcasing successful regional flywheels, such as EPB Chattanooga's projected $1.1B community benefit and Maryland's "Capital of Quantum" model.

Open discussion on career pathways from operations technicians to PhDs.• Exploring workforce templates like the South Carolina Quantum series and UMD QLab internship programs.

11:00 AM – 11:15 AM Morning Break
11:15 AM – 12:00 PM
Session 3: The Year of Quantum Security
EIT Auditorium

Panel: Panel: Ahmed Halimeh (UA Little Rock - moderator); Jason White (Quantum Foundry), Tran Phoung (UA Little Rock), Alan Phelps (UA System)

Panel focusing on the commercial realities of quantum-safe architectures, including post-quantum cryptography (PQC) and quantum key distribution (QKD). Tailored to help state CISOs and utilities understand NIST PQC standards and critical-infrastructure resilience.

12:00 PM – 1:00 PM Lunch

Afternoon Session

1:15 PM – 4:30 PM | Dual-Track Format

Time

Track A - EIT Auditorium

Technical Track

Researchers & Developers

Track B - EIT Room 420

Student Workshop

Statewide Higher Education & STEM
1:15 PM
–
2:30 PM
Session 5A: Computing Access & App Development

Presenters: Denny Dahl (IonQ), Tomer Helson (Classiq)

Core technical discussions on utilizing IonQ systems through AWS, Azure, and Google Cloud.

Classiq algorithm software. Showcasing practical application benchmarks, materials simulation, and quantum-dots/photonics research.

Session 5B: Hands-On Code Lab & Hardware Demo

Presenters: Hanna Terletska (MTSU)

Interactive lab for students learning to write basic quantum algorithms using Qiskit.

2:30 PM
–
3:15 PM
Session 6A: Quantum Networking & Memory Testbeds

Presenter: Duncan Earl (Qubitech)

Exploration of quantum repeaters, memory, and networking infrastructure.

Utilizing the EPB Chattanooga live-network lab as a roadmap for an active Arkansas testbed.

Session 6B: Hands-On Code Lab & Hardware Demo

Presenters: Hanna Terletska (MTSU)

Continuation of Interactive lab for students learning to write basic quantum algorithms using Qiskit.

3:15 PM
–
3:30 PM 		Afternoon Break Afternoon Break
3:30 PM
–
4:30 PM
Session 7: Technical Roundtable & Joint Roadmap
EIT Auditorium

Panel: Ahmed Halimeh (UA Little Rock), Steve Addison (UCA), Gregory Guisbiers (UA Little Rock), ARA Representative, Tom Coffin (UA Little Rock)

Working session with stakeholders from ARA, state universities, and industrial sponsors.

Defining near-term pilots for regional hardware access and collaborative research.