Quantum News Briefs June 25: SandboxAQ announces AQNav, world’s first commercial real-time navigation system powered by AI & quantum • Pasqal achieves key milestone exceeding 1,000 atoms in quantum processor • ICHEC and Equal1 sign MoU to advance quantum innovation • Diraq announces additional funding for $22M Series A Round
News Briefs:
SandboxAQ announces AQNav – world’s first commercial real-time navigation system powered by AI & quantum to address GPS jamming
After development and testing with leading government and private sector partners, SandboxAQ is officially announcing AQNav, a breakthrough technology designed for navigation across air, land and sea when Global Positioning Satellite (GPS) systems are jammed or not available. To date, AQNav has logged more than 200 flight-hours and more than 40 sorties across multiple regions of the world on four different aircraft types, ranging in size from single-engine planes to large military transport aircraft.
AQNav is a geo-magnetic navigation system that leverages proprietary AI algorithms, powerful quantum sensors, and the Earth’s crustal magnetic field. AQNav will provide an unjammable, all-weather, terrain-agnostic, real-time navigation solution in situations where GPS signals are unavailable, denied, or spoofed.
“GPS is a ubiquitous tool that billions of people rely on every day for their comfort, safety, security and prosperity. The intentional disruption of this transformational technology by nation-states and others puts human lives at risk and impacts governments and economies,” said Jack D. Hidary, CEO of SandboxAQ. “Working closely with our public- and private-sector partners, SandboxAQ has used AI and quantum tech to create a safe, secure navigation alternative to supplement GPS, and we’re proud to make our breakthrough AQNav system widely available to companies and governments around the world..”
Pasqal achieves key milestone exceeding 1,000 atoms in quantum processor
Pasqal, a global leader in neutral-atom quantum computing, today announced a significant technological milestone: the successful loading of over 1000 atoms in a single shot within their quantum computing setup. This breakthrough marks a crucial step in Pasqal’s progress towards quantum advantage and scalable quantum processors.
In a major technological advancemen, Pasqal has trapped more than 1,110 atoms within approximately 2,000 traps, demonstrating the feasibility of large-scale neutral atom quantum computing. In Pasqal’s quantum computing architecture, these atoms are confined and manipulated using electromagnetic fields. The internal energy states of these atoms serve as the quantum states of the qubits, which are manipulated to perform quantum operations and execute quantum algorithms.
This successful trapping of single rubidium atoms in large arrays of optical tweezers, comprising up to 2,088 sites, within a cryogenic environment at a temperature of 6 K represents one of Pasqal’s latest feats in quantum computing.
ICHEC and Equal1 sign MoU to advance quantum innovation
Equal1, a leading silicon quantum computing company, recently announced a new agreement with the Irish Centre for High-End Computing (ICHEC) to advance the deployment of High Performance Computing and Quantum Computing (HPC-QC) in Ireland and Europe to drive technical innovation, address complex scientific and industrial challenges and maintain global competitiveness as per June 20 news release.
The organizations together will:
• Promote and position High Performance Computing and Quantum Computing (HPC-QC) in Ireland and Europe as a matter of strategic importance, global competitiveness, and technical research and innovation.
• Engage jointly with other stakeholders to seek national-level funding and support for the operation and services of HPC-QC platforms for enterprise, academic and public sector organizations.
• Leverage national and European programs to collaboratively develop and engage in R&D on Equal1’s quantum computers and subsequent upgrades through 2026.
• Accelerate Quantum-HPC integration by conducting joint RD&I projects towards interoperable coupling and interfacing HPC supercomputers with QC systems.
• Enable Ireland to develop and deploy HPC-QC platforms and services for national users through synergy with the National Strategy for Quantum Technology, EU Quantum initiatives (e.g. Quantum Flagship, EuroHPC JU) and global activities (e.g. IEEE Quantum).
Diraq announces additional funding for $22M Series A Round
Diraq, a global leader in quantum computing based on silicon quantum dots, announced June 24 the expansion of its investment round, bringing the total raise to US$22 million.
The company attracted further investment from a number of prominent strategic investors comprising deep tech venture fund Main Sequence, leading global real asset technology investor – Taronga Ventures, Uniseed and UniSuper, Co:Act Capital and additional participation from foundation shareholder and research partner, UNSW, Sydney. Diraq’s Series A2 round was led by global quantum technology specialist fund Quantonation.
Diraq recently announced record control accuracy of 99.9% for a qubit manufactured by imec using industry-standard CMOS materials on a 300mm silicon wafer. This is a significant proof point solidifying the viability of Diraq’s technology to be manufactured at scale in a commercial environment.
