The optics and photonics industry’s preeminent annual conference and exhibition returns to San Francisco’s Moscone Center during Jan. 27 to Feb. 1. Photonics West 2024 will feature more than 4500 technical presentations, and show organizers are expected to welcome 1200 exhibiting companies from around the world. Visitors will be able to explore a brand new Quantum West industry exhibition at the upcoming show, in addition to the recurring BiOS and photonics industry expos. Courtesy of SPIE. Photonics West 2024 will offer more than 90 conferences across the BiOS, LASE, OPTO, and Quantum West symposia. Program highlights include the annual BiOS Hot Topics plenary, which will feature a session on photoacoustic imaging from University College London’s Paul Beard. Princeton University’s Paul Prucnal headlines the OPTO symposium with a presentation that explores neuromorphic photonics and recent progress in neuromorphic PICs. Additional plenaries and keynotes will explore technologies in imaging, sensing, materials, and more. LASE symposium plenaries and Hot Topics sessions will feature Ahmed Diallo of the Advanced Research Project Agency-Energy (ARPA-E), and Akira Furusawa of the University of Tokyo and RIKEN. Diallo will introduce ARPA-E programs on inertial fusion energy and Furusawa will discuss optical quantum computers with quantum teleportation. Quantum West will return as a symposium in 2024 and is also set to debut as a stand-alone expo running Jan. 30 to 31. The symposium will offer six tracks: quantum information systems; quantum communications, computing, and simulation; quantum sensing, imaging, and timing systems; enabling quantum materials, devices, and techniques; and quantum biology. The Quantum West Business Summit will also run Jan. 30 to 31. Panelists and speakers include Tin Komljenovic, CEO of Nexus Photonics, who will discuss PICs for Quantum 2.0. Komljenovic will be joined by top industry figures including Anjul Loiacono, vice president of quantum matter platforms at Infleqtion, who will explore building quantum sector supply chains, and Brennan Peterson, senior director for PIC T&M at PsiQuantum. Following the BiOS exhibition Jan. 27 to Jan 28, the photonics industry expo kicks off Jan. 30 and runs through Feb. 1. The expo will offer product demos and new product releases, with industry events scheduled for all three exhibition days. Photonics West company announcements are available to view before and during the show via SPIE.org. The 16th annual Prism Awards ceremony will be held on Feb. 1 during a gala event to honor the best new optics and photonics products on the market. Also, this year, SPIE will present the inaugural Catalyst Award. The award recognizes for-profit companies with specific social or environmentally focused programs that have had significant positive impacts within their workplaces, on society at large, or on the environment. The annual SPIE Startup Challenge, in which participating companies vie for sponsored prizes and the attention of potential investors, will also return. Competing companies will present their business and financial cases to a panel of industry judges that includes venture capitalists and business development experts. For more information and to register to attend Photonics West 2024, visit www.spie.org/photonics-west. Courtesy of SPIE.