Qubits, or quantum bits, are the fundamental units of quantum information. Unlike classical bits, which can be either 0 or 1, qubits can exist in a superposition of both states simultaneously. This property, along with quantum entanglement (where qubits become interconnected and the state of one instantly affects the state of another, regardless of distance). The principles of quantum mechanics govern the behavior of qubits, and harnessing their unique properties gives quantum computers their potential power.

ORCA Computing has been chosen by the Poznań Supercomputing and Networking Center (PSNC) in Poland to supply two PT-1 quantum photonics systems. These systems, funded by a Polish programme, will be used to boost PSNC's work in various scientific fields, including biology, chemistry, and machine learning. The PT-1 systems, which use single photons as information carriers, will be integrated into PSNC's high-performance infrastructure. Krzysztof Kurowski, PSNC Technical Director, sees this as a significant step towards understanding quantum computing and developing new quantum-classical applications. The systems will be installed in November and December 2023.

Quandela, a European leader in photonic quantum computing, has delivered its first quantum computer, MosaiQ, to OVHcloud datacenters, marking a significant milestone as the first European quantum computing company to supply a machine to an industrial client. OVHcloud becomes the first European cloud services provider to own a quantum system based on photonic processors. The quantum computer is modular and scalable, with the ability to add new modules to increase computational capabilities. Three more machines are in production at Quandela, with deliveries planned for 2024.

The quantum computing industry is currently in the "noisy intermediate scale quantum computing" (NISQ) era, where the focus is on developing larger-scale devices. However, as the number of qubits (the basic unit of quantum information) increases, so does the potential for errors. Fire Opal, a new technology, aims to suppress these errors automatically, improving the performance of quantum algorithms run on real quantum hardware.

A recent report suggested that Chinese Intelligence operatives were attempting to gain industrial and commercial secrets from researchers in the field of quantum computing. The Guardian article has claimed that  Chinese actors posing as recruitment consultants on LinkedIn were attempting to obtain secret information.

Physicists have conducted the first quantum calculations using individual atoms on a surface, controlling titanium atoms with microwave signals from a scanning tunnelling microscope (STM), potentially paving the way for a new type of Quantum Computer. The technique, developed by Andreas Heinrich at the Institute for Basic Science in Seoul and his team, is not expected to rival quantum computing approaches by Google and IBM. However, it could be used to study quantum properties in other chemical elements or molecules. The team manipulated the spin of electrons in titanium atoms to perform a simple two-qubit quantum operation, a process that could potentially be extended to 100 qubits.

Rigetti Computing, a pioneer in quantum-classical computing, has been awarded a project by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) to advance quantum algorithms for solving complex optimization problems. The project, named “Scheduling Problems with Efficient Encoding of Qubits” (SPEEQ), aims to develop an efficient encoding of optimization problems onto qubits, enabling larger problems to […]

IonQ has unveiled two new systems, IonQ Forte Enterprise and IonQ Tempo, to provide businesses with quantum capabilities. The systems can be integrated into existing infrastructure, making quantum technology more accessible. IonQ Forte Enterprise, with a target performance of #AQ 35, is designed for complex computational problems and can be deployed across existing data centres. IonQ Tempo, an #AQ 64 enterprise-grade system, is expected to deliver substantial business value and provide a computational space 536 million times larger than IonQ Forte Enterprise. The announcements were made at the Quantum World Congress by Peter Chapman, CEO and President of IonQ.

HSBC and Terra Quantum Harness Hybrid Quantum Tech for Financial Services Optimization

The UK government has announced the first winners of a £15 million competition, the Quantum Catalyst Fund, aimed at exploring the benefits of using quantum technologies across various sectors such as health, transport, and net zero.