Dr. Celia Merzbacher is the Executive Director of the Quantum Economic Development Consortium (QED-C), a consortium that aims to enable and grow the U.S. quantum industry. QED-C is supported by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and more than 150 industry, academic and other members and is managed by SRI International. Previously, Dr. Merzbacher was Vice President for Innovative Partnerships at the Semiconductor Research Corporation, a consortium of the semiconductor industry.  In 2003-2008, she was Assistant Director for Technology R&D in the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy and Executive Director of the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology (PCAST).  Dr. Merzbacher began her career as a materials scientist at the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory in Washington D.C., where her research led to six patents and more than 50 technical publications.  She has served as Chair of the National Materials and Manufacturing Board of the National Academies of Science, Engineering and Medicine, on the Board of Directors of ANSI, and on advisory boards of several university research centers.