Experienced data center and AI sales expert with over 20 years at Intel takes charge of sales and business development at the photonic computing pioneer
Stuttgart, 7. April 2026 –Q.ANT, a leading provider of photonic processors for energy-efficient high-performance computing and artificial intelligence, is strengthening its leadership team with a strategic new appointment: Michael Krueger started in the newly created position of Vice President of Commercials effective April 1, 2026. In this role, he will be responsible for sales and business development as the company accelerates the commercialization of Q.ANT’s photonic processor technology.
Michael Krueger brings more than two decades of experience in technology sales, most of it at Intel Corporation. During his more than 20 years at Intel, he progressed from software engineer through technical sales roles to Director of Data Center and Artificial Intelligence Sales Germany. In this role, he led the commercial and technical team responsible for the sales of data center and AI solutions in Germany. Prior to that, he held various sales management positions with a focus on data center infrastructure and high-performance computing.
After his time at Intel, Krueger gained further experience as Director of HPC & AI Market Development EMEA at Openchip & Software Technologies in Barcelona and as Chief Revenue Officer at the AI startup co-mind.ai. This combination of corporate experience and startup mentality makes him the ideal candidate for Q.ANT’s commercialization phase.
“Michael Krueger combines a deep technical understanding of data center technologies with proven sales expertise in the enterprise segment,” says Dr. Michael Förtsch, founder and CEO of Q.ANT. “His experience in the data center and AI markets is exactly what we need during this crucial phase of commercializing our photonic processors.”
“Photonics computing has the potential to fundamentally change the way AI workloads are processed,” adds Michael Krueger. “After more than two decades at the heart of the semiconductor and data center industries, I look forward to positioning Q.ANT’s groundbreaking technology with customers and partners worldwide.”
Michael Krueger’s appointment is part of a series of strategic personnel decisions at Q.ANT. Utz Bacher from IBM was already brought on board as Vice President of Software in early 2026. With Krüger’s expertise in the commercial sector, Q.ANT is consistently driving forward its transition from a technology developer to a market-ready product provider.
About Q.ANT
Q.ANT is a Stuttgart-based photonics company that develops photonic AI accelerators for AI and high-performance computing, offering a scalable alternative to transistor-based systems. Its Native Processing Units (NPUs) use photonic integrated circuits based on a lithium niobate material platform to perform mathematical operations directly on the chip using optical signals, enabling energy-efficient co-processing for complex computational tasks. Q.ANT operates its own TFLN chip pilot line in collaboration with IMS CHIPS.