(Reuters) IBM is joining forces with Germany’s Fraunhofer Research Institute to explore the potential of quantum computing.
The partnership is backed by the German’s government plan to invest 650 million euros ($717 million) over two years in wider research in the field.
Chancellor Angela Merkel and IBM CEO Ginni Rometty confirmed the partnership Tuesday in Berlin. The announcement comes as Europe’s biggest economy seeks to catch up to the United States and China in a global technology race.
IBM will install a Q System One quantum computer at one of the Fraunhofer facilities in Germany, partnering with the Fraunhofer Society – an applied research institute – to build a research unit and community around it.