Joseph Jacks

My journey into quantum biology began unexpectedly through my background in software, open source technology, and artificial intelligence. Meeting Stuart Hameroff and learning more deeply about his work on microtubules, quantum processes, and consciousness challenged many of my assumptions about where computation can occur and what biological systems may be capable of. In this talk, I will describe how that encounter drew me into the history and emerging science of quantum biology, and why I believe this field may have profound implications for the future of computing. If biology exploits physical processes that conventional computers largely ignore, understanding those mechanisms could point toward entirely new computational substrates and new approaches to intelligence.

Joseph Jacks is the founder and General Partner of OSS Capital, an early stage venture capital firm focused on commercial open source software and emerging technologies. He previously founded KubeCon and was an early contributor to the Cloud Native Computing Foundation and the Kubernetes ecosystem. Through OSS Capital, he has led more than 40 early stage investments representing over $200 million in funding. His interests increasingly extend beyond conventional computing to decentralized AI, quantum biology, and the possibility that biological systems may reveal new principles and substrates for computation.