Benjamin Schiffer
Early-Career Fellow 2026–2027

Benjamin Schiffer (born 1994 in Germany) is a theoretical physicist working at the intersection of quantum computing, many-body physics, and machine learning. He is fascinated by the idea of using quantum computers as scientific instruments at the frontier of what we can learn about nature at its extremes–the smallest and coldest scales, which are the territory of quantum phenomena. Benjamin has been especially interested in hybrid approaches that combine machine learning with quantum computing, as well as in bridging theoretical ideas to real experiments.

Benjamin received his PhD in 2026 from the Technical University of Munich (DE), for his doctoral research at the Max Planck Institute of Quantum Optics in the group of Ignacio Cirac. Before turning to theory, he gained hands-on experience in an experimental quantum optics lab. Alongside physics, he holds a Bachelor's degree in philosophy, where he studied the ethics of humans interacting with intelligent machines. He remains curious about questions beyond his own field and enjoys sharing (quantum) science with the public.