CEQIP 2025: Twenty Years of Quantum Information in Slovakia
In the summer of 2025, the 20th edition of CEQIP – the Central European Quantum Information Processing workshop brought together researchers working in quantum information and related fields. The anniversary edition took place from 30 June to 3 July 2025 at Smolenice Castle, Slovakia, and welcomed more than 60 participants.
Twenty editions are quite a milestone. Since its beginnings, CEQIP has been organised by the Research Center for Quantum Information (RCQI) at the Institute of Physics of the Slovak Academy of Sciences, and over the past two decades it has grown into a well-established meeting within the quantum information community.
Looking back at the history of CEQIP also means looking back at some of the people who helped shape the field. Over the years, the workshop has welcomed many prominent researchers, including Charles H. Bennett, Michal Horodecki, Richard Jozsa, Renato Renner, Andreas Winter, Jens Eisert, Frank Verstraete, Alexander Holevo, Antonio Acín, Časlav Brukner and Mark Hillery, among many others. Several of them have returned to CEQIP more than once, contributing to the workshop’s continuing scientific community and atmosphere.
Twenty years – and still going strong
The scientific programme of the 20th edition continued this tradition, featuring invited talks and tutorials by Armin Tavakoli, Marco Túlio Quintino, Guillermo Currás-Lorenzo, Martin Plávala, Nicola Lo Gullo, Remigiusz Augusiak and Zoltán Zimborás, among others. The talks covered a broad range of topics, from quantum information processing and quantum networks to QKD security, quantum measurements, error mitigation and certification of quantum systems.
As every year, the programme also included a poster session, giving participants an opportunity to present their latest results and discuss them in a more informal setting. The scientific programme was complemented by the traditional CEQIP social activities, including wine tasting, a conference dinner, exploring the surroundings of Smolenice and, of course, the CEQIP Cipher Game.
CEQIP on the move
One of the traditions of CEQIP is its changing venue. The workshop moves between charming and easily accessible locations across Central Europe. Over the years, CEQIP has been held in places such as Znojmo, Valtice, Smolenice, Skalica and Telč, as well as several other locations. This combination of beautiful surroundings and easy accessibility has always been an important part of the CEQIP experience – providing plenty of opportunities for scientific discussions to continue long after the formal programme ends.
The 20th edition at Smolenice Castle was therefore more than just another CEQIP. It was a chance to celebrate two decades of meetings, ideas, collaborations and friendships built around quantum information – and to look back at how much the field, and the community around it, has changed since the first edition in 2004.
The anniversary edition was organised by RCQI at the Institute of Physics of the Slovak Academy of Sciences, together with QUTE.sk and the Cyber Security Hub Brno. We would like to thank all the organisers, invited and contributed speakers, participants and everyone who has helped make CEQIP what it is today.
Twenty years of CEQIP is quite a story – and, judging by the programme and the conversations in Smolenice, there is still plenty of quantum information left to discuss.
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