Nicholas Harris

My career has been focused on understanding computers—how they work (down to the atomic scale) and where they are headed. During my time at MIT as a PhD student and post-doctoral fellow, I explored what may become the ultimate tool for understanding the exquisite details of our universe: quantum computers. Quantum computing is profoundly exciting, but supporting hardware technologies are not ready yet. I've developed a level of expertise in designing components and systems that create, process, and detect light and what I've been able to build leads me to believe that the next step in the evolution of computing is all about light. I founded Lightmatter with a mission of creating photonic computers and new ways for chips to communicate. We are building machines that will serve as a new engine for human progress.