(WSJ) Amazon.com Inc.’s cloud division said Thursday it has launched a commercial service that allows millions of customers to experiment with quantum computing platforms produced by three technology companies.
The launch follows a test period of about eight months of the service with academic institutions and companies including Fidelity Investments Inc. Fidelity has increased its focus on quantum computing in recent years in part because it’s becoming easier for coders to develop algorithms for quantum computers without needing to be experts in quantum hardware, he said.
Amazon Braket, part of Amazon Web Services, lets existing AWS customers experiment with early-stage quantum computing machines from D-Wave Systems Inc., IonQ Inc. and Rigetti Computing over its cloud. Amazon Braket is expected to add more quantum computing providers to its platform in the coming months.
Cloud competitors to Amazon, such as Microsoft Corp. and International Business Machines Corp., also offer quantum computing services and access to machines. The technology, though, is still in its early stages.
Corporate interest in quantum computing is picking up, Mr. Dekate said.
Gartner saw a 40.5% increase in client engagement around quantum computing during the first half of this year compared with the same period last year, with hundreds of client inquiries about the technology,