Quantum News Briefs Novemberl 6: Infleqtion Expands Operations in Oxford, Underscoring Foundational Role in UK’s Quantum Future • D-Wave Achieves Significant Milestone with Calibration of 4,400+ Qubit Advantage2 Processor • BTQ Technologies and Macquarie University Announce Strategic Research Collaboration to Advance Quantum Computing and Secure Communications
Infleqtion Expands Operations in Oxford, Underscoring Foundational Role in UK’s Quantum Future
Infleqtion announced on November 5 the expansion of its Oxford operations, building on a series of recent achievements that reinforce the UK’s position as a quantum-enabled economy. Through collaborations with government, academia, and industry, Infleqtion is accelerating the development and deployment of quantum technologies and demonstrating the transformative impact they can have in areas like transportation, energy, healthcare, security, defence, advanced manufacturing, digital technologies, finance and banking. These efforts align with the UK’s strategic goals to strengthen its technological infrastructure and national security, and will be on full display at the UK National Quantum Technologies Showcase 2024 on the 8th of November, 2024.
“Infleqtion is leading the UK’s quantum revolution,” said Tim Ballance, President of Infleqtion UK. “Our work with partners across government, industry, and academia demonstrates the real-world impact of quantum technology. Together, we are building a future where the UK leads on the global stage, delivering solutions that will benefit generations to come.”
To support its growth and R&D efforts, Infleqtion has relocated to a state-of-the-art facility in the Oxford Technology Park. The new 7,500 sq. ft. space will enable deeper collaborations and accelerate the development of quantum technologies for national and global impact.
D-Wave Achieves Significant Milestone with Calibration of 4,400+ Qubit Advantage2 Processor
D-Wave Quantum Inc. (NYSE: QBTS), a leader in quantum computing systems, software, and services and the world’s first commercial supplier of quantum computers, announced January 6 that it has completed the calibration and benchmarking of a 4,400+ qubit Advantage2™ processor. This milestone marks a significant step forward in D-Wave’s ongoing development of its sixth-generation annealing quantum computing system. The latest Advantage2 processor shows substantial performance gains over the current Advantage™ system in solving customers’ complex computational problems in areas such as optimization, AI, and materials science.
Recent performance benchmarks demonstrate that the 4,400+ qubit Advantage2 processor is computationally more powerful than the current Advantage system, solving a range of problems – including 3D lattice problems common in materials science – 25,000 times faster. The processor also delivers five times better solutions on problems requiring a high degree of precision. Furthermore, it surpasses the current Advantage system in 99% of tests on satisfiability problems, highlighting its capabilities across a wide range of quantum applications.
Compared with the current Advantage system, the 4,400+ qubits Advantage2 processor delivers significant improvements in:
- Qubit coherence time: doubled, which drives faster time to solution
- Energy scale: increased by 40% to deliver higher-quality solutions
- Qubit connectivity: increased from 15 to 20-way connectivity to enable solutions to larger problems
BTQ Technologies and Macquarie University Announce Strategic Research Collaboration to Advance Quantum Computing and Secure Communications
BTQ Technologies Corp. (CBOE CA: BTQ) (FSE: NG3) (OTCQX: BTQQF), a global quantum technology company focused on securing mission-critical networks, announced on November 5 a new research collaboration with Macquarie University, marking a significant step forward in the company’s efforts to expand research and development in quantum algorithms and quantum computing. This partnership leverages the combined strengths and expertise of both parties in the areas of quantum information theory and post-quantum secure communications, with the aim of integrating quantum processing into a range of communication protocols to enhance speed, security, and energy efficiency.
The collaboration builds on the success of an earlier contract initiated in 2022, which resulted in the development of Quantum Proof-of-Work (QPoW). This novel approach to distributed consensus dramatically reduces the energy footprint of blockchain technologies by integrating quantum samplers into the consensus mechanism.
The new research contract commenced on June 1, 2024, with Dr Gopikrishnan Muraleedharan and Professor Gavin Brennen from Macquarie University at the helm. The Macquarie team will also oversee Sydney Quantum Academy PhD students funded through the CSIRO’s Creating the Next Generation of Quantum Technology Specialists program. This initiative includes internships at BTQ, presenting an exciting opportunity for BTQ’s industry leaders to work alongside Macquarie’s quantum experts and push the boundaries of the field.
“Collaborating with BTQ Technologies offers a unique opportunity to address the pressing security challenges posed by the advent of large-scale quantum computers,” said Professor Brennen who is also Director of BTQ AU. “B
