JPMorgan is hiring quantum computing PhDs on $260k salaries again. It's less interested in VR

JPMorgan is widely recognized as the industry leader for quantum computing research in financial services, but its quantum division faced a significant roadblock this time last year. Marco Pistoia and Charles Lim, the bank's two most senior quantum specialists, left in confusing and seemingly unanticipated circumstances. Life has gone on without them, however, as JPMorgan has begun hiring quantum computing researchers again.

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In the past month, JPMorgan has posted job listings for an associate, senior associate and VP for quantum computing in New York. The senior associate role, which pays a salary of up to $190k, is focused specifically on quantum error correction, a process that makes data from quantum computing algorithms more reliable and accurate. The VP role, which pays a salary of up to $260k, doesn't have a set area of focus, but you'll be expected to lead research projects on "algorithms, error correction, compilation, simulation, or financial applications." Applicants are expected to have a relevant PhD and a strong academic publication record. Bloomberg reported last month that JPMorgan has more than 50 people in the team already.

The quantum roles sit within the bank's Global Technology Applied Research (GTAR) division. It's led by Rob Otter, who most recently ran quantum computing at State Street, and previously worked in JPMorgan's blockchain arm Kinexys (then known as Onyx). He was appointed to the role, formerly held by Pistoia, last July. Ruslan Shaydulin, an executive director in the quantum team, took Pistoia's secondary title: head of quantum computing. 

GTAR has published multiple quantum research papers since Otter joined. In November, it published a report on its most significant breakthrough, certified randomness, in partnership with startup Quantinuum. This was first announced last March, before news of Pistoia's departure; he has not been credited as an author while Otter has. Both men were credited on a paper published this February, focused on using quantum algorithms to price derivatives. 

Not all banks are sold on quantum. Bloomberg reported that Goldman Sachs' quantum team, once an industry leader, has "evaporated" amid cost cuts as a meaningful breakthrough was seen as too far away. Indeed, Otter suggested to Bloomberg that useful quantum algorithms are still years away.

GTAR also includes other frontier technologies like immersive technology (AR/VR). That division also lost its leader, Blair McIntyre, who returned to academia with Northeastern University. However, it's understood that the bank is not looking to find a replacement for this role and is focusing its research on other areas. The bank previously used the technology to provide immersive training simulations; this might have been useful in the COVID era but as banks return to the office, times seem to have changed.

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