Honeywell Throws Down Quantum Gauntlet to Google, IBM & Microsoft

(IndustryWeek) Honeywell International Inc. threw down the gauntlet to Google and IBM in the race to create a new kind of supercomputer, announcing its own breakthrough in the arcane world of quantum mechanics. Honeywell’s approach to quantum computing employs electromagnetic fields to trap charged atoms that can be encoded using microwave signals and lasers. The company’s experience with control-system hardware gives it an edge over competitors, Honeywell said.
“We have a very unique technology that we believe is as good or better than anything that’s out there today,” CEO Darius Adamczyk said on May 14. The company pegs the potential market for quantum-computing technology at $50 billion.
Honeywell’s quantum project is far enough advanced that Adamczyk said he expects it to generate revenue “late this year or next year.”