HCLTech Trends Report: Al, multi-cloud and quantum computing to drive change in 2023  CNBCTV18

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In July 2022, the Israel Innovation Authority announced a budget of NIS 100 million ($29 million) to build a quantum computing research center headed by Israeli startup Quantum Machines, which will also help create a quantum computer.

Israels new quantum computing center is part of the NIS 1.25 billion ($390 million) Israel National Quantum Initiative, launched in 2018 to facilitate relevant quantum research, develop human capital in the field, encourage industrial projects, and invite international cooperation on R&D.

Israel has about two dozen startups and companies currently focused on quantum technologies, including Quantum Machines, whichraised $50 millionlast September. The company was founded in 2018, and went on to develop a standard universal language for quantum computers, as well as a unique platform that helps them run.

According to the Times of Israel, Defense Ministrys Directorate of Defense Research and Development (DDR&D) will issue a separate tender to finance the development of quantum technologies for military use for another NIS 100 million, the innovation authority said. According to their joint announcement Tuesday, the budget will fund two parallel avenues. The Israel Innovation Authority will focus on developing the infrastructure for quantum computational ability, which, it said, may include the use of technology from abroad. Meanwhile, the Defense Ministrys Directorate of Defense Research and Development (DDR&D) will establish a national center with quantum capabilities that will work with academia, industry, and government partners to develop a quantum processor and a complete quantum computer.

Tech giants like Google, Microsoft, IBM, and Intel are allracingto make quantum computing more accessible and build their systems. Countries such as China, the US, Germany, India, and Japanare pouring millionsinto developing their quantum abilities.

According to recent marketprojections, the global quantum computing market size was expected to have been worth $487.4 million in 2021, and reach $3.7 billion by 2030. Israels $29 million is minuscule compared to the governments above, and the tech elephants.

These government-funded initiatives to achieve dominance in critical technology remind me of Japans Fifth Generation, which never really reached its goals.

Itamar Sivan, co-founder and CEO of Quantum Machines, said in a company statement that the project's goal was to give Israeli companies access to the most advanced quantum technologies and services so that they can develop deep quantum expertise across industry and academia. This expertise will allow Israeli companies across various sectors and industries to gain a leading global position.

Quantum Machines, founded in 2018, has built a hardware and software solution Quantum Orchestration Platform (QOP) for operating quantum systems to facilitate research and enable future breakthroughs. The startup also developed the QUA, a standard universal language for quantum computers that will allow researchers and scientists to write programs for varied quantum computers with one unified code. Quantum Machines, together with a consortium of Israeli and international quantum tech companies at the center, will build a quantum computer to be made available to the commercial and research communities.

Israels $29 million is minuscule compared to the governments above and tech elephants. According torecent market projections, the global quantum computing market is expected to grow from about $470 million in 2021 to about $1.765 billion by 2026.

Quantum Machines is an exciting company. They possess no quantum computer of their own, and their products are somewhat unique. While most quantum computers are in labs as objects of experiments by scientists, Sivan explained something I didnt realize to me. According to Sivan, a quantum computer needs three elements: a quantum computer and an orchestration platform of (conventional) hardware and software. There is no software in a quantum computer. The platform manages the progress of its algorithm mainly through laser beam pulses. The logic needed to operate the quantum computer resides with and is controlled by the orchestration platform.

The crucial difference between Google's and Quantum Machines' strategy is that Google views the current NISQ state of affairs as a testbed for finding algorithms and applications for future development. At the same time, Sivan and his company produced an orchestration platform to put the current technology into play. Their platform is quantum computer agnostic it can operate with any of them. Sivan feels that focusing solely on the number of qubits is just part of the equation.

The center will offer access to research and development on three quantum processing technologies superconducting qubits, cold ions, and optic compute and provide services to the Israeli quantum computing community, the Israel Innovation Authority said Sunday. As per the Times of Israel:

Ami Appelbaum, chairman of the Israel Innovation Authority, said the new center was 'the answer to an existing strategic market failure and is part of the authoritys policy of enabling the industry to maintain its leading position at the forefront of breakthrough and disruptive technologies.'

'Quantum computing is a technology Israeli industry cannot ignore,' said Israel Innovation Authority CEO Dror Bin in a statement Tuesday. 'The industry must develop knowledge and access to infrastructure in which it can develop growth engines for activities it will decide to lead.'

I've always believed that action speaks louder than words. While Google is taking the long view, Quantum Machines provides the platform to see how far we can go with current technology. As I wrote in The unpredictable rise of quantum computing - have recent breakthroughs accelerated the timeline?

Google suggests the real unsolved problems in fields like optimization, materials science, chemistry, drug discovery, finance, and electronics will take machines with thousands of qubits and even envision one million on a planar array etched in aluminum. Major problems need solving, such as noise elimination, coherence, and lifetime (a qubit holds its position in a tiny time slice).

Googles tactics are familiar. Every time you use TensorFlow, it gets better. Every time you play with their autonomous car, it gets better. Their collaboration with a dozen technically advanced companies improves their quantum technology.

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The Israel Innovation Authority is building a new quantum computing research center - what will the impact be? - Diginomica

Slowly but surely, quantum computing is getting ready for its closeup.

Google made headlines in October 2019 upon proclaiming that it had achieved the long-anticipated breakthrough of quantum supremacy. Thats when a quantum computer is able to perform a task a conventional computer cant. Not in a practical amount of time, anyway. For instance, Google claimed the test problem it ran would have taken a classical computer thousands of years to complete though some critics and competitors called that a gross exaggeration.

IBM, for one, wasnt having it. The other big player in quantum, it promptly posted a response essentially arguing that Google had underestimated the muscle of IBM supercomputers which, though blazingly fast, arent of the quantum variety.

Tech giant head-butting aside, Googles achievement was a genuine milestone one that further established quantum computing in the broader consciousness and prompted more people to wonder: What will these things actually do?

But even once quantum computing reigns supreme, its potential impact remains largely theoretical. But thats more a reflection of quantum computings still-fledgling status than unfulfilled promise.

Before commercial-scale quantum computing is a thing, however, researchers must clear some major hurdles. Chief among them is upping the number of qubits, units of information that these impressive pieces of hardware use to perform tasks. Whereas classical computer bits exist as 1s or 0s, qubits can be either or both simultaneously. Thats key to massively greater processing speeds, which are necessary to simulate molecular-level quantum mechanics.

Despite quantums still-hypothetical nature and the long road ahead, predictions and investment abound. Google CEO Sundar Pichai likened his companys recent proof-of-concept advancement to the Wright brothers 12-second flight: Though very basic and short-lived, it demonstrated whats possible. And whats possible, experts say, is impressive indeed.

From cybersecurity to pharmaceutical research to finance, here are some ways quantum computing facilitates major advancements.

More on Quantum Computing5 Skills You Need to Launch a Quantum Computing Career

Location: Armonk, New York

Quantum computing and artificial intelligence may prove to be mutual back-scratchers. As VentureBeat explained, advances in deep learning will likely increase our understanding of quantum mechanics while at the same time fully realized quantum computers could far surpass conventional ones in data pattern recognition. Regarding the latter, IBMs quantum research team has found that entangling qubits on the quantum computer that ran a data-classification experiment cut the error rate in half compared to unentangled qubits.

What this suggests, an essay in the MIT Technology Review noted, is that as quantum computers get better at harnessing qubits and at entangling them, theyll also get better at tackling machine-learning problems.

IBMs research came in the wake of another promising machine-learning classification algorithm: a quantum-classical hybrid run on a 19-qubit machine built by Rigetti Computing.

Harnessing [quantum computers statistical distribution] has the potential to accelerate or otherwise improve machine learning relative to purely classical performance, Rigetti researchers wrote. The hybridization of classical compute and quantum processors overcame a key challenge in realizing that aim, they explained.

Both are important steps toward the ultimate goal of significantly accelerating AI through quantum computing. Which might mean virtual assistants that understand you the first time. Or non-player-controlled video game characters that behave hyper-realistically. The potential advancements are numerous.

I think AI can accelerate quantum computing," Googles Pichai said, "and quantum computing can accelerate AI.

Location: New York, New York

The list of partners that comprise Microsofts so-called Quantum Network includes a slew of research universities and quantum-focused technical outfits, but precious few business affiliates. However, two of the five NatWest and Willis Towers Watson are banking interests. Similarly, at IBMs Q Network, JPMorgan Chase stands out amid a sea of tech-focused members as well as government and higher-ed research institutions.

That hugely profitable financial services companies would want to leverage paradigm-shifting technology is hardly a shocker, but quantum and financial modeling are a truly natural match thanks to structural similarities. As a group of European researchers wrote last year, [T]he entire financial market can be modeled as a quantum process, where quantities that are important to finance, such as the covariance matrix, emerge naturally.

A lot of recent research has focused specifically on quantums potential to dramatically speed up the so-called Monte Carlo model, which essentially gauges the probability of various outcomes and their corresponding risks. A 2019 paper co-written by IBM researchers and members of JPMorgans Quantitative Research team included a methodology to price option contracts using a quantum computer.

Its seemingly clear risk-assessment application aside, quantum in finance could have a broad future. If we had [a commercial quantum computer] today, what would we do?Nikitas Stamatopoulos, a co-author of the price-options paper, wondered. The answer today is not very clear.

Location: Redmond, Washington

The world has a fertilizer problem that extends beyond an overabundance of poop. Much of the planets fertilizer is made by heating and pressurizing atmospheric nitrogen into ammonia, a process pioneered in the early 1900s by German chemist Fritz Haber.

The so-called Haber process, though revolutionary, proved quite energy-consuming: some three percent of annual global energy output goes into running Haber, which accounts for more than one percent of greenhouse gas emissions. More maddening, some bacteria perform that process naturally we simply have no idea how and therefore cant leverage it.

With an adequate quantum computer, however, we could probably figure out how and, in doing so, significantly conserve energy. In 2017, researchers from Microsoft isolated the cofactor molecule thats necessary to simulate. And theyll do that just as soon as the quantum hardware has a sufficient qubit count and noise stabilization. Googles CEO told MIT he thinks the quantum improvement of Haber is roughly a decade away.

Related ReadingQuantum Computing Movies: How Realistic Are They?

Location: Berkeley, California

Recent research into whether quantum computing might vastly improve weather prediction has determined its a topic worth researching! And while we still have little understanding of that relationship, many in the field view it as a notable use case.

Ray Johnson, the former CTO at Lockheed Martin and now an independent director at quantum startup Rigetti Computing, is among those whove indicated that quantum computings method of simultaneous (rather than sequential) calculation will likely be successful in analyzing the very, very complex system of variables that is weather.

While we currently use some of the worlds most powerful supercomputers to model high-resolution weather forecasts, accurate numerical weather prediction is notoriously difficult. In fact, it probably hasnt been that long since you cursed an off-the-mark meteorologist.

Location: London, England

To presidential candidate Andrew Yang, Googles quantum milestone meant that no code is uncrackable. He was referring to a much-discussed notion that the unprecedented factorization power of quantum computers would severely undermine common internet encryption systems.

But Googles device (like all current QC devices) is far too error-prone to pose the immediate cybersecurity threat that Yang implied. In fact, according to theoretical computer scientist Scott Aaronson, such a machine wont exist for quite a while. But the looming danger is serious. And the years-long push toward quantum-resistant algorithms like the National Institute of Standards and Technologys ongoing competition to build such models illustrates how seriously the security community takes the threat.

One of just 26 so-called post-quantum algorithms to make the NISTs semifinals comes from, appropriately enough, British-based cybersecurity leader Post-Quantum. Experts say the careful and deliberate process exemplified by the NISTs project is precisely what quantum-focused security needs. As Dr. Deborah Franke of the National Security Agency told Nextgov, There are two ways you could make a mistake with quantum-resistant encryption: One is you could jump to the algorithm too soon, and the other is you jump to the algorithm too late.

Location: Toronto, Ontario

The real excitement about quantum is that the universe fundamentally works in a quantum way, so you will be able to understand nature better, Googles Pichai told MIT Technology Review in the wake of his companys recent announcement. Its early days, but where quantum mechanics shines is the ability to simulate molecules, molecular processes, and I think that is where it will be the strongest. Drug discovery is a great example.

One company focusing computational heft on molecular simulation, specifically protein behavior, is Toronto-based biotech startup ProteinQure. Flush with $4 million in recent seed funding as of 2019, it partners with quantum-computing leaders (IBM, Microsoft and Rigetti Computing) and pharma research outfits (SRI International, AstraZeneca) to explore QCs potential in modeling protein.

Thats the deeply complex but high-yield route of drug development in which proteins are engineered for targeted medical purposes. Although its vastly more precise than the old-school trial-and-error method of running chemical experiments, its infinitely more challenging from a computational standpoint. As Boston Consulting Group noted, merely modeling a penicillin molecule would require an impossibly large classical computer with 10-to-the-86th-power bits. For advanced quantum computers, though, that same process could be a snap and could lead to the discovery of new drugs for serious maladies like cancer, Alzheimers and heart disease.

Cambridge, Mass.-based Biogen is another notable company exploring quantum computings capacity for drug development. Focused on neurological disease research, the biotech firm announced a 2017 partnership with quantum startup 1QBit and Accenture.

Location: Stuttgart, Germany

QCs potential to simulate quantum mechanics could be equally transformative in other chemistry-related realms beyond drug development. The auto industry, for example, wants to harness the technology to build better car batteries.

In 2018, German car manufacturer Daimler AG (the parent company of Mercedes-Benz) announced two distinct partnerships with quantum-computing powerhouses Google and IBM. Electric vehicles are mainly based on a well-functioning cell chemistry of the batteries, the company wrote in its magazine at the time. Quantum computing, it added, inspires justified hope for initial results in areas like cellular simulation and the aging of battery cells. Improved batteries for electric vehicles could help increase adoption of those vehicles.

Daimler is also looking into how QC could potentially supercharge AI, plus manage an autonomous-vehicle-choked traffic future and accelerate its logistics. It follows in the footsteps of another major Teutonic transportation brand: Volkswagen. In 2017, the automaker announced a partnership with Google focused on similar initiatives. It also teamed up with D-Wave Systems in 2018.

Location: Wolfsburg, Germany

Volkswagens exploration of optimization brings up a point worth emphasizing: Despite some common framing, the main breakthrough of quantum computing isnt just the speed at which it will solve challenges, but the kinds of challenges it will solve.

The traveling salesman problem, for instance, is one of the most famous in computation. It aims to determine the shortest possible route between multiple cities, hitting each city once and returning to the starting point. Known as an optimization problem, its incredibly difficult for a classical computer to tackle. For fully realized QCs, though, it could be much easier.

D-Wave and VW have already run pilot programs on a number of traffic- and travel-related optimization challenges, including streamlining traffic flows in Beijing, Barcelona and Lisbon. For the latter, a fleet of buses traveled along distinct routes that were tailored to real-time traffic conditions through a quantum algorithm, which VW continues to tweak after each trial run. According to D-Wave CEO Vern Brownell, the companys pilot brings us closer than ever to realizing true, practical quantum computing.

Location: College Park, Maryland

In the search for sustainable energy alternatives, hydrogen fuel, when produced without the use of fossil fuels, is serving to be a viable solution for reducing harmful greenhouse gas emissions. Most hydrogen fuel production is currently rooted in fossil fuel use, though quantum computing could create an efficient avenue to turn this around.

Electrolysis, the process of deconstructing water into basal hydrogen and oxygen molecules, can work to extract hydrogen for fuel in an environmentally-friendly manner. Quantum computing has already been helping research how to utilize electrolysis for the most efficient and sustainable hydrogen production possible.

As of 2019, IonQ performed the first simulation of a water molecule on a quantum device, marking as evidence that computing is able to approach accurate chemical predictions. As of 2022, IonQ released Forte, its newest generation of quantum systems allowing software-configurability and greater flexibility for researchers and other users. Theres hopes that the power of quantum computing can further climate change solution research on a large and accelerated scale.

Location: Boulder, Colorado

Quantum computing has become a hot topic amongst the tech industry, though one particular company is keeping it cool. ColdQuanta is known for its use of cold atom quantum computing, in which laser-cooled atoms can act the role as qubits. With this method, fragile atoms can be kept cold while the operating system remains at room temperature, allowing quantum devices to be used in various environments.

To aid in research conducted by NASAs Cold Atom Laboratory, ColdQuantas Quantum Core technology was successfully shipped to the International Space Station in 2019. The technology has since been expected to be used to support communications, global positioning, and signal processing applications. ColdQuanta has also been signed in multi-million dollar contracts by U.S. government agencies to develop quantum atomic clock and ion trap system technologies as of 2021.

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10 Quantum Computing Applications & Examples to Know | Built In

Quantum computers perform calculations based on the probability of an object's state before it is measured - instead of just 1s or 0s - which means they have the potential to process exponentially more data compared to classical computers.

Classical computers carry out logical operations using the definite position of a physical state. These are usually binary, meaning its operations are based on one of two positions. A single state - such as on or off, up or down, 1 or 0 - is called a bit.

In quantum computing, operations instead use the quantum state of an object to produce what's known as a qubit. These states are the undefined properties of an object before they've been detected, such as the spin of an electron or the polarisation of a photon.

Rather than having a clear position, unmeasured quantum states occur in a mixed 'superposition', not unlike a coin spinning through the air before it lands in your hand.

These superpositions can be entangled with those of other objects, meaning their final outcomes will be mathematically related even if we don't know yet what they are.

The complex mathematics behind these unsettled states of entangled 'spinning coins' can be plugged into special algorithms to make short work of problems that would take a classical computer a long time to work out if they could ever calculate them at all.

Such algorithms would be useful in solving complex mathematical problems, producing hard-to-break security codes, or predicting multiple particle interactions in chemical reactions.

Building a functional quantum computer requires holding an object in a superposition state long enough to carry out various processes on them.

Unfortunately, once a superposition meets with materials that are part of a measured system, it loses its in-between state in what's known as decoherence and becomes a boring old classical bit.

Devices need to be able to shield quantum states from decoherence, while still making them easy to read.

Different processes are tackling this challenge from different angles, whether it's to use more robust quantum processes or to find better ways to check for errors.

For the time being, classical technology can manage any task thrown at a quantum computer. Quantum supremacy describes the ability of a quantum computer to outperform their classical counterparts.

Some companies, such as IBM and Google, claim we might be close, as they continue to cram more qubits together and build more accurate devices.

Not everybody is convinced that quantum computers are worth the effort. Some mathematicians believe there are obstacles that are practically impossible to overcome, putting quantum computing forever out of reach.

Time will tell who is right.

All topic-based articles are determined by fact checkers to be correct and relevant at the time of publishing. Text and images may be altered, removed, or added to as an editorial decision to keep information current.

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How Do Quantum Computers Work? : ScienceAlert

Physics Nobel Prize winner Serge Haroche on quantum computing: There are still many difficulties to overcome  EL PAS USA

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Physics Nobel Prize winner Serge Haroche on quantum computing: There are still many difficulties to overcome - EL PAS USA

Accelerating advances in quantum computingare serving as powerful reminders that the technology is rapidly advancing toward commercial viability. In just the past few months, for example, a research center in Japan announced a breakthrough in entangling qubits (the basic unit of information in quantum, akin to bits in conventional computers) that could improve error correction in quantum systems and potentially make large-scale quantum computers possible. And one company in Australia has developed software that has shown in experiments to improve the performance of any quantum-computing hardware.

As breakthroughs accelerate, investment dollars are pouring in, and quantum-computing start-ups are proliferating. Major technology companies continue to develop their quantum capabilities as well: companies such as Alibaba, Amazon, IBM, Google, and Microsoft have already launched commercial quantum-computing cloud services.

Of course, all this activity does not necessarily translate into commercial results. While quantum computing promises to help businesses solve problems that are beyond the reach and speed of conventional high-performance computers, use cases are largely experimental and hypothetical at this early stage. Indeed, experts are still debating the most foundational topics for the field (for more on these open questions, see sidebar, Debates in quantum computing).

Still, the activity suggests that chief information officers and other leaders who have been keeping an eye out for quantum-computing news can no longer be mere bystanders. Leaders should start to formulate their quantum-computing strategies, especially in industries, such as pharmaceuticals, that may reap the early benefits of commercial quantum computing. Change may come as early as 2030, as several companies predict they will launch usable quantum systems by that time.

To help leaders start planning, we conducted extensive research and interviewed 47 experts around the globe about quantum hardware, software, and applications; the emerging quantum-computing ecosystem; possible business use cases; and the most important drivers of the quantum-computing market. In the report Quantum computing: An emerging ecosystem and industry use cases, we discuss the evolution of the quantum-computing industry and dive into the technologys possible commercial uses in pharmaceuticals, chemicals, automotive, and financefields that may derive significant value from quantum computing in the near term. We then outline a path forward and how industry decision makers can start their efforts in quantum computing.

An ecosystem that can sustain a quantum-computing industry has begun to unfold. Our research indicates that the value at stake for quantum-computing players is nearly $80 billion (not to be confused with the value that quantum-computing use cases could generate).

Because quantum computing is still a young field, the majority of funding for basic research in the area still comes from public sources (Exhibit 1).

Exhibit 1

However, private funding is increasing rapidly. In 2021 alone, announced investments in quantum-computing start-ups have surpassed $1.7 billion, more than double the amount raised in 2020 (Exhibit 2). We expect private funding to continue increasing significantly as quantum-computing commercialization gains traction.

Exhibit 2

Hardware is a significant bottleneck in the ecosystem. The challenge is both technical and structural. First, there is the matter of scaling the number of qubits in a quantum computer while achieving a sufficient level of qubit quality. Hardware also has a high barrier to entry because it requires a rare combination of capital, experience in experimental and theoretical quantum physics, and deep knowledgeespecially domain knowledge of the relevant options for implementation.

Multiple quantum-computing hardware platforms are under development. The most important milestone will be the achievement of fully error-corrected, fault-tolerant quantum computing, without which a quantum computer cannot provide exact, mathematically accurate results (Exhibit 3).

Exhibit 3

Experts disagree on whether quantum computers can create significant business value before they are fully fault tolerant. However, many say that imperfect fault tolerance does not necessarily make quantum-computing systems unusable.

When might we reach fault tolerance? Most hardware players are hesitant to reveal their development road maps, but a few have publicly shared their plans. Five manufacturers have announced plans to have fault-tolerant quantum-computing hardware by 2030. If this timeline holds, the industry will likely establish a clear quantum advantage for many use cases by then.

The number of software-focused start-ups is increasing faster than any other segment of the quantum-computing value chain. In software, industry participants currently offer customized services and aim to develop turnkey services when the industry is more mature. As quantum-computing software continues to develop, organizations will be able to upgrade their software tools and eventually use fully quantum tools. In the meantime, quantum computing requires a new programming paradigmand software stack. To build communities of developers around their offerings, the larger industry participants often provide their software-development kits free of charge.

In the end, cloud-based quantum-computing services may become the most valuable part of the ecosystem and can create outsize rewards to those who control them. Most providers of cloud-computing services now offer access to quantum computers on their platforms, which allows potential users to experiment with the technology. Since personal or mobile quantum computing is unlikely this decade, the cloud may be the main way for early users to experience the technology until the larger ecosystem matures.

Most known use cases fit into four archetypes: quantum simulation, quantum linear algebra for AI and machine learning, quantum optimization and search, and quantum factorization. We describe these fully in the report, as well as outline questions leaders should consider as they evaluate potential use cases.

We focus on potential use cases in a few industries that research suggests could reap the greatest short-term benefits from the technology: pharmaceuticals, chemicals, automotive, and finance. Collectively (and conservatively), the value at stake for these industries could be between roughly $300 billion and $700 billion (Exhibit 4).

Exhibit 4

Quantum computing has the potential to revolutionize the research and development of molecular structures in the biopharmaceuticals industry as well as provide value in production and further down the value chain. In R&D, for example, new drugs take an average of $2 billion and more than ten years to reach the market after discovery. Quantum computing could make R&D dramatically faster and more targeted and precise by making target identification, drug design, and toxicity testing less dependent on trial and error and therefore more efficient. A faster R&D timeline could get products to the right patients more quickly and more efficientlyin short, it would improve more patients quality of life. Production, logistics, and supply chain could also benefit from quantum computing. While it is difficult to estimate how much revenue or patient impact such advances could create, in a $1.5 trillion industry with average margins in earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) of 16 percent (by our calculations), even a 1 to 5 percent revenue increase would result in $15 billion to $75 billion of additional revenues and $2 billion to $12 billion in EBIT.

Quantum computing can improve R&D, production, and supply-chain optimization in chemicals. Consider that quantum computing can be used in production to improve catalyst designs. New and improved catalysts, for example, could enable energy savings on existing production processesa single catalyst can produce up to 15 percent in efficiency gainsand innovative catalysts may enable the replacement of petrochemicals by more sustainable feedstock or the breakdown of carbon for CO2 usage. In the context of the chemicals industry, which spends $800 billion on production every year (half of which relies on catalysis), a realistic 5 to 10 percent efficiency gain would mean a gain of $20 billion to $40 billion in value.

The automotive industry can benefit from quantum computing in its R&D, product design, supply-chain management, production, and mobility and traffic management. The technology could, for example, be applied to decrease manufacturing processrelated costs and shorten cycle times by optimizing elements such as path planning in complex multirobot processes (the path a robot follows to complete a task) including welding, gluing, and painting. Even a 2 to 5 percent productivity gainin the context of an industry that spends $500 billion per year on manufacturing costswould create $10 billion to $25 billion of value per year.

Finally, quantum-computing use cases in finance are a bit further in the future, and the advantages of possible short-term uses are speculative. However, we believe that the most promising use cases of quantum computing in finance are in portfolio and risk management. For example, efficiently quantum-optimized loan portfolios that focus on collateral could allow lenders to improve their offerings, possibly lowering interest rates and freeing up capital. It is earlyand complicatedto estimate the value potential of quantum computingenhanced collateral management, but as of 2021, the global lending market stands at $6.9 trillion, which suggests significant potential impact from quantum optimization.

In the meantime, business leaders in every sector should prepare for the maturation of quantum computing.

Until about 2030, we believe that quantum-computing use cases will have a hybrid operating model that is a cross between quantum and conventional high-performance computing. For example, conventional high-performance computers may benefit from quantum-inspired algorithms.

Beyond 2030, intense ongoing research by private companies and public institutions will remain vital to improve quantum hardware and enable moreand more complexuse cases. Six key factorsfunding, accessibility, standardization, industry consortia, talent, and digital infrastructurewill determine the technologys path to commercialization.

Leaders outside the quantum-computing industry can take five concrete steps to prepare for the maturation of quantum computing:

Leaders in every industry have an uncommon opportunity to stay alert to a generation-defining technology. Strategic insights and soaring business value could be the prize.

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Quantum computing use cases--what you need to know | McKinsey

The idea of using the laws of quantum mechanics for computation was proposed in 1982 by Richard Feynman. But Deutschwho is at the University of Oxford, UKis often credited with establishing the conceptual foundations of the discipline. Computer bits that obey quantum principles, such as superposition and entanglement, can carry out some calculations much faster and more efficiently than ones that obey classical rules. In 1985 Deutsch postulated that a device made from such quantum bits (qubits) could be made universal, meaning it could simulate any quantum system. Deutsch framed his proposal in the context of the many worlds interpretation of quantum mechanics (of which he is an advocate), likening the process of one quantum computation to that of many parallel computations occurring simultaneously in entangled worlds.

To motivate further work in quantum computing, researchers at the time needed problems that a quantum computer could uniquely solve. I remember conversations in the early 1990s in which people would argue about whether quantum computers would ever be able to do anything really useful, says quantum physicist William Wootters of Williams College, Massachusetts, who has worked with Bennett and Brassard on quantum cryptography problems. Then suddenly Peter Shor devised a quantum algorithm that could indeed do something eminently useful.

In 1995 Shor, who is now at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, developed an algorithm that could factorize large integersdecompose them into products of primesmuch more efficiently than any known classical algorithm. In classical computation, the time that it takes to factorize a large number increases exponentially as the number gets larger, which is why factorizing large numbers provides the basis for todays methods for online data encryption. Shors algorithm showed that for a quantum computer, the time needed increases less rapidly, making factorizing large numbers potentially more feasible. This theoretical demonstration immediately injected energy into the field, Wootters says. Shor has also made important contributions to the theory of quantum error correction, which is more challenging in quantum than in classical computation (see Focus: LandmarksCorrecting Quantum Computer Errors).

Without Deutsch and Shor we would not have the field of quantum computation as we know it today, says quantum theorist Artur Ekert of the University of Oxford, who considers Deutsch his mentor. David defined the field, and Peter took it to an entirely different level by discovering the real power of quantum computation and by showing that it actually can be done.

Data encryption is the topic cited for the award of Bennett (IBMs Thomas J. Watson Research Center in Yorktown Heights, New York) and Brassard (University of Montreal, Canada). In 1984 the pair described a protocol in which information could be encoded in qubits and sent between two parties in such a way that the information could not be read by an eavesdropper without that intervention being detected. Like quantum computing, this quantum cryptographic scheme relies on entangling qubits, meaning that their properties are interdependent, no matter how far apart they are separated. This BB84 protocol and similar quantum encryption schemes have now been used for secure transmission of data along optical networks and even via satellite over thousands of kilometers (see Focus: Intercontinental, Quantum-Encrypted Messaging and Video).

In 1993 Bennett and Brassard also showed how entanglement may be harnessed for quantum teleportation, whereby the state of one qubit is broadcast to another distant one while the original state is destroyed (see Focus: LandmarksTeleportation is not Science Fiction). This process too has applications in quantum information processing.

I am really gratified by this award because it recognizes the field of quantum information and computation, Shor says. Deutsch echoes the sentiment: Im glad that [quantum information] is now officially regarded as fundamental physics rather than as philosophy, mathematics, computer science, or engineering.

Deutsch, Shor, Bennett, and Brassard deserve recognition for their work, and Im delighted that theyre getting it, Wootters says. He notes that their research not only inspired the development of quantum technologies, but also influenced new research in quantum foundations. Quantum information theory views quantum theory through a novel lens and opens up a new perspective from which to address foundational questions.

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Physics - Breakthrough Prize for the Physics of Quantum Informationand of Cells - Physics

Replete with tunneling particles, electron wells, charmed quarks and zombie cats, quantum mechanics takes everything Sir Isaac Newton taught about physics and throws it out the window.

Every day, researchers discover new details about the laws that govern the tiniest building blocks of the universe. These details not only increase scientific understanding of quantum physics, but they also hold the potential to unlock a host of technologies, from quantum computers to lasers to next-generation solar cells.

But theres one area that remains a mystery even in this most mysterious of sciences: the quantum mechanics of nuclear fuels.

Until now, most fundamental scientific research of quantum mechanics has focused on elements such as silicon because these materials are relatively inexpensive, easy to obtain and easy to work with.

Now, Idaho National Laboratory researchers are planning to explore the frontiers of quantum mechanics with a new synthesis laboratory that can work with radioactive elements such as uranium and thorium.

An announcement about the new laboratory appears online in the journalNature Communications.

Uranium and thorium, which are part of a larger group of elements called actinides, are used as fuels in nuclear power reactors because they can undergo nuclear fission under certain conditions.

However, the unique properties of these elements, especially the arrangement of their electrons, also means they could exhibit interesting quantum mechanical properties.

In particular, the behavior of particles in special, extremely thin materials made from actinides could increase our understanding of phenomena such as quantum wells and quantum tunneling (see sidebar).

To study these properties, a team of researchers has built a laboratory around molecular beam epitaxy (MBE), a process that creates ultra-thin layers of materials with a high degree of purity and control.

The MBE technique itself is not new, said Krzysztof Gofryk, a scientist at INL. Its widely used. Whats new is that were applying this method to actinide materials uranium and thorium. Right now, this capability doesnt exist anywhere else in the world that we know of.

The INL team is conducting fundamental research science for the sake of knowledge but the practical applications of these materials could make for some important technological breakthroughs.

At this point, we are not interested in building a new qubit [the basis of quantum computing], but we are thinking about which materials might be useful for that, Gofryk said. Some of these materials could be potentially interesting for new memory banks and spin-based transistors, for instance.

Memory banks and transistors are both important components of computers.

To understand how researchers make these very thin materials, imagine an empty ball pit at a fast-food restaurant. Blue and red balls are thrown in the pit one at a time until they make a single layer on the floor. But that layer isnt a random assortment of balls. Instead, they arrange themselves into a pattern.

During the MBE process, the empty ball pit is a vacuum chamber, and the balls are highly pure elements, such as nitrogen and uranium, that are heated until individual atoms can escape into the chamber.

The floor of our imaginary ball pit is, in reality, a charged substrate that attracts the individual atoms. On the substrate, atoms order themselves to create a wafer of very thin material in this case, uranium nitride.

Back in the ball pit, weve created layer of blue and red balls arranged in a pattern. Now we make another layer of green and orange balls on top of the first layer.

To study the quantum properties of these materials, Gofryk and his team will join two dissimilar wafers of material into a sandwich called a heterostructure. For instance, the thin layer of uranium nitride might be joined to a thin layer of another material such as gallium arsenide, a semiconductor. At the junction between the two different materials, interesting quantum mechanical properties can be observed.

We can make sandwiches of these materials from a variety of elements, Gofryk said. We have lots of flexibility. We are trying to think about the novel structures we can create with maybe some predicted quantum properties.

We want to look at electronic properties, structural properties, thermal properties and how electrons are transported through the layers, he continued. What will happen if you lower the temperature and apply a magnetic field? Will it cause electrons to behave in certain way?

INL is one of the few places where researchers can work with uranium and thorium for this type of science. The amounts of the radioactive materials and the consequent safety concerns will be comparable to the radioactivity found in an everyday smoke alarm.

INL is the perfect place for this research because were interested in this kind of physics and chemistry, Gofryk said.

In the end, Gofryk hopes the laboratory will result in breakthroughs that help attract attention from potential collaborators as well as recruit new employees to the laboratory.

These actinides have such special properties, he said. Were hoping we can discover some new phenomena or new physics that hasnt been found before.

In 1900, German physicist Max Planck first described how light emitted from heated objects, such as the filament in a light bulb, behaved like particles.

Since then, numerous scientists including Albert Einstein and Niels Bohr have explored and expanded upon Plancks discovery to develop the field of physics known as quantum mechanics. In short, quantum mechanics describes the behavior of atoms and subatomic particles.

Quantum mechanics is different than regular physics, in part, because subatomic particles simultaneously have characteristics of both particles and waves, and their energy and movement occur in discrete amounts called quanta.

More than 120 years later, quantum mechanics plays a key role in numerous practical applications, especially lasers and transistors a key component of modern electronic devices. Quantum mechanics also promises to serve as the basis for the next generation of computers, known as quantum computers, which will be much more powerful at solving certain types of calculations.

Uranium, thorium and the other actinides have something in common that makes them interesting for quantum mechanics: the arrangement of their electrons.

Electrons do not orbit around the nucleus the way the earth orbits the sun. Rather, they zip around somewhat randomly. But we can define areas where there is a high probability of finding electrons. These clouds of probability are called orbitals.

For the smallest atoms, these orbitals are simple spheres surrounding the nucleus. However, as the atoms get larger and contain more electrons, orbitals begin to take on strange and complex shapes.

In very large atoms like uranium and thorium (92 and 90 electrons respectively), the outermost orbitals are a complex assortment of party balloon, jelly bean, dumbbell and hula hoop shapes. The electrons in these orbitals are high energy. While scientists can guess at their quantum properties, nobody knows for sure how they will behave in the real world.

Quantum tunneling is a key part of any number of phenomena, including nuclear fusion in stars, mutations in DNA and diodes in electronic devices.

To understand quantum tunneling, imagine a toddler rolling a ball at a mountain. In this analogy, the ball is a particle. The mountain is a barrier, most likely a semiconductor material. In classical physics, theres no chance the ball has enough energy to pass over the mountain.

But in the quantum realm, subatomic particles have properties of both particles and waves. The waves peak represents the highest probability of finding the particle. Thanks to a quirk of quantum mechanics, while most of the wave bounces off the barrier, a small part of that wave travels through if the barrier is thin enough.

For a single particle, the small amplitude of this wave means there is a very small chance of the particle making it to the other side of the barrier.

However, when large numbers of waves are travelling at a barrier, the probability increases, and sometimes a particle makes it through. This is quantum tunneling.

Quantum wells are also important, especially for devices such as light emitting diodes (LEDs) and lasers.

Like quantum tunneling, to build quantum wells, you need alternating layers of very thin (10 nanometers) material where one layer is a barrier.

While electrons normally travel in three dimensions, quantum wells trap electrons in two dimensions within a barrier that is, for practical purposes, impossible to overcome. These electrons exist at specific energies say the precise energies needed to generate specific wavelengths of light.

About Idaho National LaboratoryBattelle Energy Alliance manages INL for the U.S. Department of Energys Office of Nuclear Energy. INL is the nations center for nuclear energy research and development,and alsoperforms research in each of DOEs strategic goal areas: energy, national security, science and the environment. For more information, visitwww.inl.gov.Follow us on social media:Twitter,Facebook,InstagramandLinkedIn.

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New laboratory to explore the quantum mysteries of nuclear materials - EurekAlert

TOKYO, CAMBRIDGE, England and BROOMFIELD, Colo., Oct. 18, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Mitsui & Co., Ltd ("Mitsui") and Quantinuum have signed a strategic partnership agreement to collaborate in the delivery of quantum computing in Japan and the Asia-Pacific region.

Mitsui, which is committed to digital transformation, and Quantinuum, one of the world's leading quantum computing companies, integrated across hardware and software, have entered this strategic partnership to develop quantum computing use cases, which are expected to drive significant business transformation and innovation in the future.

Mitsui and Quantinuum will accelerate collaboration, cooperation, and development of new business models. They will jointly pursue quantum application development and provide value added services to organizations working across a variety of quantum computing domains, which is expected to be worth US$450B US$850B worldwide by 2040.*

Yoshio Kometani, Representative Director, Executive Vice President and Chief Digital Information Officer of Mitsui & Co., Ltd. stated:"We are very pleased with the strategic partnership between Mitsui and Quantinuum. By combining Quantinuum's cutting-edge quantum computing expertise and diverse quantum talents with Mitsui's broad business platform and network, we will work together to provide new value to our customers and create new business value in a wide range of industrial fields."

Ilyas Khan, Founder and CEO of Quantinuum stated:"The alliance between Mitsui and Quantinuum demonstrates our shared commitment to accelerating quantum computing across all applications and use cases in a diverse range of sectors, including chemistry, finance, and cybersecurity. Today's announcement reinforces our belief in the global quantum leadership shown by corporations and governments in Japan, pioneered by corporate leaders like Mitsui."

Details of the Strategic Partnership

Collaboration areas and applications

Recent Achievements by Quantinuum

About Mitsui & Co., Ltd.

Location: 1-2-1 Otemachi, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo

Established: 1947

Representative: Kenichi Hori, President and Representative Director

Mitsui & Co., Ltd. (8031: JP) is a global trading and investment company with a diversified business portfolio that spans approximately 63 countries in Asia, Europe, North, Central & South America, The Middle East, Africa and Oceania.

Mitsui has about 5,500 employees and deploys talent around the globe to identify, develop, and grow businesses in collaboration with a global network of trusted partners. Mitsui has built a strong and diverse core business portfolio covering the Mineral and Metal Resources, Energy, Machinery and Infrastructure, and Chemicals industries.

Leveraging its strengths, Mitsui has further diversified beyond its core profit pillars to create multifaceted value in new areas, including innovative Energy Solutions, Healthcare & Nutrition and through a strategic focus on high-growth Asian markets. This strategy aims to derive growth opportunities by harnessing some of the world's main mega-trends: sustainability, health & wellness, digitalization and the growing power of the consumer.

Mitsui has a long heritage in Asia, where it has established a diverse and strategic portfolio of businesses and partners that gives it a strong differentiating edge, provides exceptional access for all global partners to the world's fastest growing region and strengthens its international portfolio.

For more information on Mitsui & Co's businesses visit, https://www.mitsui.com/jp/en/index.html

About Quantinuum

Location: Cambridge, U.K., Broomfield, Colorado, U.S.A.

Established: December 2021 (through the merger of Honeywell Quantum Solutions (U.S.) and Cambridge Quantum Computing (U.K.))

Representative: Ilyas Khan, CEO; Tony Uttley, COO; Shuya Kekke, CEO & Representative Director, Japan

Quantinuum is one of the world's largest integrated quantum computing companies, formed by the combination of Honeywell Quantum Solutions' world-leading hardware and Cambridge Quantum's class-leading middleware and applications. Science-led and enterprise-driven, Quantinuum accelerates quantum computing and the development of applications across chemistry, cybersecurity, finance, and optimization. Its focus is to create scalable and commercial quantum solutions to solve the world's most pressing problems in fields such as energy, logistics, climate change, and health. The company employs over 480 individuals, including 350 scientists, at nine sites across the United States, Europe, and Japan.

Selected major customers (in Japan): Nippon Steel Corporation, JSR Corporation

http://www.quantinuum.com

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1923231/Quantinuum.jpgPhoto - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1923232/Quantinuum_System_Model.jpg

SOURCE Quantinuum LLC

See the article here:
Strategic Partnership Agreement to Develop the Quantum Computing Market in Japan and Asia-Pacific - PR Newswire

We live in a world characterised by inequality, poverty, economic volatility, globalisation, climate change and ambiguity. In my own country, South Africa, residents have to navigate socioeconomic and political instability, power and water cuts, homelessness, unethical governance and mediocre or no service delivery.

It is a far cry from what the country could be if we brought its best talent and resources to bear for the benefit of humanity.

Innovation will be key to any positive changes and research-intensive universities have a central to play in that innovation. As the University of the Witwatersrand (or Wits, as its commonly known) turns 100, my colleagues and I have been thinking a great deal about the inventions and breakthroughs that have emerged from the university in the past 100 years and what is coming next.

Great innovations have emerged from the work done by Wits researchers that have shifted the dial in sectors ranging from health to computing to quantum and nuclear physics. These rich seams of knowledge continue to inform policy and daily decisions and are the foundation of cutting edge research the institution continues to produce.

On 1 September 1939, Adolf Hitler invaded Poland. World War 2 was underway. Barely three months later, the first radar set was tested on Wits Universitys campus. Britain and its allies were looking for a way to detect enemy aircraft and ships. A group of scientists among them Sir Basil Schonland, Director of the Bernard Price Institute of Geophysical Research and another Wits engineer, Professor Guerino Bozzoli came together to harness the power of radio waves.

Almost a century on, the science of sensors has taken several quantum leaps. Professor Andrew Forbes and his team at Wits are encrypting, transmitting, and decoding data quickly and securely through light beams. He has just secured R54 million for the Wits Quantum Initiative which explores theoretical and experimental quantum science and engineering, secure communications, enhanced quantum-inspired imaging, novel nano and quantum-based sensors and devices.

The university has also come a long way on its computing journey. In 1960 it was the first university in South Africa to own an IBM mainframe computer. Today, in partnership with IBM, were the first African university to access a quantum computer.

Read more: New research proves the long-held theory that lasers can create fractals

As the Chair of the National Quantum Computing Working Group in South Africa, this is an area where I see immense potential for Africa. Classical computing has served society incredibly well. It gave us the Internet and cashless commerce. It sent humans to the moon, put robots on Mars and smartphones in our pockets.

But many of the worlds biggest mysteries and potentially greatest opportunities remain beyond the grasp of classical computers. To continue the pace of progress, we need to augment the classical approach with a completely new paradigm, one that follows its own set of rules - quantum computing.

This radically new way of performing computer calculations is exponentially faster than any classical computer. It can run new algorithms to solve previously unsolvable problems in optimisation, chemistry and machine learning, and its applications are far-reaching from physics to healthcare.

Innovative healthcare is sorely needed across the African continent. Here, too, Wits has been able to play a vital role in the research, teaching and learning, clinical, social and advocacy spheres. It was the first university to lead COVID-19 vaccination trials in South Africa.

Our researchers also developed technology to improve the accurate testing for tuberculosis. And the Pelebox, an invention to cut down the time that patients spend waiting for medication in hospitals.

Elsewhere in the institution, researchers have connected the brain to the internet, used brainwaves to control a robotic prosthetic hand and developed an affordable 3D printed bionic hand.

Research intensive universities in South Africa need to ask the difficult questions about their role in a changing society.

How do we serve as a catalyst for social change? How do we best use our intellectual dynamism and work with the public and private sectors to effect positive change? How do we create new, relevant knowledge and translate it into innovation? How do we best develop critical thinkers, innovators, creators and the high-level skills required to advance our economy, and the future world of work?

How do we quantify our social impact and ensure that it is contextually attuned? How do we influence policy change?

These questions are at the heart of the universitys strategy today. And theyre no doubt being considered across the higher education sector as universities work to harness their collective talent and the resources at their disposal to craft a new future and transform society for the benefit of all humanity.

Read more:
100 years of innovation and inventions: South African vice chancellor reflects on what's next - The Conversation

Nearly all schools have computer-based classes, but many dont offer even foundational classes on programming, let alone advanced computing.

A 2022 study by the Code.org Advocacy Coalition found that 53.4% of Ohio high school students attend a school that offers foundational computer science classes such as basic programming. However, only 22% of urban school districts offered foundational computer science courses compared to 57% of suburban schools.

In 2019, Ohio was ranked 37th among all 50 states in the number of college computer science graduates, as a percentage of total college graduates at all levels (Kentucky was ranked 1st), and 44th in growth in number of computer science graduates over five years, according to data from the U.S. Census Bureau.

Ohio updates curriculum

Ohio recently invested heavily in changing this. Last month, the Ohio State Board of Education approved an updated Model Curriculum for Computer Science. The 400 pages of guidance for local districts recommends students as early as kindergarten learning to protect passwords and understand the basics of artificial intelligence, and high schoolers using cybersecurity concepts like cluster computing and quantum key distribution.

The change represents a dramatic update from previous educational standards, initiated by the state last year. Ohio currently has over 20,000 open computer science positions, said Bryan Stewart, workforce director at the Montgomery County Educational Service Center. As Ohio prepares to welcome tech manufacturing giants like Intel, that gap may get worse.

Thats a question that we play with when we look at the future of Ohios workforce, Stewart said. We have to ask ourselves, Will Dayton, will the Miami Valley be a haven for startups? Will we see tech companies born out of the minds of our kids? If we want that to be a reality, if we want venture capital to speed into Ohio, you cant do that unless you teach kids about computer science.

Stebbins High School in the Mad River School District takes a different approach. Many classes through the schools Career Technology Program incorporate computer science in a tangential way, such as engineering and robotics, or graphic design and digital media. Students learn to work with several systems, such as SolidWorks, AutoCAD, and Adobe Photoshop, said Career Tech Director and Assistant Principal Jeff Berk.

We also have career tech courses at our middle school, Berk said, adding that the state of Ohio supports career tech education. We are able to stay up to industry standards within all of our programs, and making sure our students are prepared, and what theyre going to see (in the workplace), they had the chance to see it here.

In recent years, Mad River discontinued a cybersecurity career path based on lack of enrollment and student interest, Berk said, in favor of a Teacher Academy. However, juniors and seniors can also participate in the Tech Prep program, where students do hands-on IT work throughout the building, troubleshooting everything from printers to student laptops.

Obstacles to improvement

Improving computer science education faces several hurdles. One issue governments have grappled with is that the field evolves so quickly that its difficult for educators to keep up, even at the local level.

I think we do the best we can. But computer science changes so quickly. Its not like math where algebra is the same now as it was 100 years ago, Schultz said. Now weve got standard things like quantum computing and artificial intelligence and machine learning, things that werent even spoken of five years ago. So its tough for schools, tough for anybody with a limited budget, to try and stay on top of that.

The State Committee on Computer Science, formed by this years state budget, outlined 10 recommendations in August that, if implemented, would help make Ohio a national leader in computer science education and workforce pipeline, state officials said. Among these include a commitment by the state to fund computer science courses at 1% of the K-12 funding formula, about $94 million today, in future years, as well as making a single credit computer science course a high school graduation requirement.

Funding is important because hardware that educators have access to sometimes lags behind what is used in the industry, Berk said.

A lot of times in education, the access to technology that students have sometimes is outdated, he said. Thats one of the major challenges. Especially in high school, when they go out into to the workforce, that theyre having that opportunity to work with machines and computers that are going to be at the same level

Finding teachers is also huge problem, as often individuals who are qualified to teach the next generation about computer science have no financial incentive to do so.

The majority of them realize that they can go out and find a job in the industry and make double what they would make as a teacher, said Schultz.

Minorities, girls lag

To address teacher shortages, the state committee recommended Teach CS grants that fund training for teachers to obtain computer science licensure, and establishing an Office of Computer Science to support the over 600 Ohio school districts in implementing their own computer science programs.

Stebbins Teacher Academy was created both to address the teacher shortage in the general K-12 sphere and supply a program that matched students interests, Berk said.

Were doing what we can do to help supply the region with the workers that we need for all the different professions, he said.

The states Model Curriculum also includes provisions for equitable access to computer science education. Schools in lower-income neighborhoods and schools with large numbers of minority students often offer only rudimentary user skills rather than problem-solving and computational thinking, according to the curriculum.

Among students who took the Advanced Placement Computer Science exam in 2020, only 6% of students were Black or African American, 16% were Hispanic or Latino and 0.5% were Native American, according to data from the College Board, which administers AP tests.

Female students are also underrepresented in high school computer science classes, accounting for just 34% of AP Computer Science Principles participants and 25% of AP Computer Science A participants, per College Board data. During the 2020-21 school year, female students accounted for only 27% of over 3,700 AP Computer Science exams taken in Ohio.

In order to reach female and minority students, the state board recommends using examples that are equally relevant to both males and females, and tying problems to students everyday lives.

Particularly for young learners and beginners, visual, block-based programming languages help address language and syntax barriers, according to state documents.

Getting more girls and minority students into coding is useful, not just for creating a diverse workforce, but for addressing the huge need for computer-savvy people in todays industry. After-school programs like Girls Who Code also are working to bridge this gap, but the model curriculum aims to tackle these problems inside the classroom.

Private sector companies, the industry side of things, they really want to see a more diverse workforce. But theyre never going to have them unless we start earlier and try to start breaking down some of these barriers or perceptions, Stewart said.

Read this article:
Schools get creative with computer science teaching as Ohios state standards try to keep with the times - Dayton Daily News

COLLEGE PARK, Md.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--IonQ (NYSE: IONQ), an industry leader in quantum computing, today announced its participation in IEEE International Conference on Quantum Computing and Engineering (QCE22). The weeklong event will take place in Broomfield, Colorado, on September 18-23, 2022, and brings together some of the worlds leading quantum researchers, scientists, entrepreneurs, and academics to discuss and explore the latest advancements in the field of quantum.

IonQ co-founder and Chief Scientist Chris Monroe will keynote the event on September 19, where he will summarize the distinct advantages of trapped ion quantum computers in both academic and industrial settings, along with their uses in scientific and commercial applications. Fellow co-founder and Chief Technology Officer Jungsang Kim will also be participating in a workshop program on September 20, focused on constructing control systems for trapped ion quantum computers.

Additional IonQ team members will also be joining a number of workshops and panel discussions throughout the week, exploring topics like working with the Microsoft Azure Quantum Platform, the need for low-level programming to deliver quantum advantage, and the key challenges when scaling towards practical quantum computing. Fellow panelists and workshop participants include researchers and executives from Microsoft, IBM, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, and more.

Visit the conference page here to learn more about QCE22, or click here to learn more about IonQs latest updates to its IonQ Aria system.

About IonQ

IonQ, Inc. is a leader in quantum computing, with a proven track record of innovation and deployment. IonQ's current generation quantum computer, IonQ Forte, is the latest in a line of cutting-edge systems, including IonQ Aria, a system that boasts industry-leading 23 algorithmic qubits. Along with record performance, IonQ has defined what it believes is the best path forward to scale. IonQ is the only company with its quantum systems available through the cloud on Amazon Braket, Microsoft Azure, and Google Cloud, as well as through direct API access. IonQ was founded in 2015 by Christopher Monroe and Jungsang Kim based on 25 years of pioneering research. To learn more, visit http://www.ionq.com.

IonQ Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains certain forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. Some of the forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of forward-looking words. Statements that are not historical in nature, including the words anticipate, expect, suggests, plan, believe, intend, estimates, targets, projects, should, could, would, may, will, forecast and other similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. These statements include those related to IonQs ability to further develop and advance its quantum computers and achieve scale; IonQs ability to optimize quantum computing results even as systems scale; the expected launch of IonQ Forte for access by select developers, partners, and researchers in 2022 with broader customer access expected in 2023; IonQs market opportunity and anticipated growth; and the commercial benefits to customers of using quantum computing solutions. Forward-looking statements are predictions, projections and other statements about future events that are based on current expectations and assumptions and, as a result, are subject to risks and uncertainties. Many factors could cause actual future events to differ materially from the forward-looking statements in this press release, including but not limited to: market adoption of quantum computing solutions and IonQs products, services and solutions; the ability of IonQ to protect its intellectual property; changes in the competitive industries in which IonQ operates; changes in laws and regulations affecting IonQs business; IonQs ability to implement its business plans, forecasts and other expectations, and identify and realize additional partnerships and opportunities; and the risk of downturns in the market and the technology industry including, but not limited to, as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. The foregoing list of factors is not exhaustive. You should carefully consider the foregoing factors and the other risks and uncertainties described in the Risk Factors section of IonQs Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended March 31, 2022 and other documents filed by IonQ from time to time with the Securities and Exchange Commission. These filings identify and address other important risks and uncertainties that could cause actual events and results to differ materially from those contained in the forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date they are made. Readers are cautioned not to put undue reliance on forward-looking statements, and IonQ assumes no obligation and does not intend to update or revise these forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise. IonQ does not give any assurance that it will achieve its expectations.

Link:
IonQ to Participate in IEEE International Conference on Quantum Computing and Engineering (QCE22) - Business Wire

At a glance.

Cisco Talos says the Russian threat actor Gamaredon (also known as Primitive Bear) continues to conduct espionage campaigns against Ukrainian organizations. The threat actor is using spearphishing emails to distribute malicious Microsoft Office documents:

"Cisco Talos discovered Gamaredon APT activity targeting users in Ukraine with malicious LNK files distributed in RAR archives. The campaign, part of an ongoing espionage operation observed as recently as August 2022, aims to deliver information-stealing malware to Ukrainian victim machines and makes heavy use of multiple modular PowerShell and VBScript (VBS) scripts as part of the infection chain. The infostealer is a dual-purpose malware that includes capabilities for exfiltrating specific file types and deploying additional binary and script-based payloads on an infected endpoint."

Kaspersky warns that the RedLine Trojan is being distributed with a bundle of malware that can spread itself by posting YouTube videos with malicious links. The researchers note that while this technique is unusual, it's achieved by "using relatively unsophisticated software":

"In addition to the payload itself, the discovered bundle is of note for its self-propagation functionality. Several files are responsible for this, which receive videos, and post them to the infected users YouTube channels along with the links to a password-protected archive with the bundle in the description. The videos advertise cheats and cracks and provide instructions on hacking popular games and software. Among the games mentioned are APB Reloaded, CrossFire, DayZ, Dying Light 2, F1 22, Farming Simulator, Farthest Frontier, FIFA 22, Final Fantasy XIV, Forza, Lego Star Wars, Osu!, Point Blank, Project Zomboid, Rust, Sniper Elite, Spider-Man, Stray, Thymesia, VRChat and Walken. According to Google, the hacked channels were quickly terminated for violation of the companys Community Guidelines."

Researchers at AdvIntel haveobservedmore than 1.2 million Emotet infections since the beginning of 2022. Most of the infections (35.7%) are located in the United States. The researchers also warn that the Quantum and BlackCat ransomware groups are now using the malware distribution botnet following the breakup of Conti in June 2022. BleepingComputeraddsthat significant spikes in Emotet activity were observed by both AdvIntel andESETin 2022.

According to Check Points visibility, however, the FormBook infostealer replaced Emotet as the most prevalent malware strain in August 2022, followed by the AgentTesla Trojan, the XMRig cryptominer, and the Guloader downloader.

Deloitte has published the results of a survey on awareness of cybersecurity risks related to quantum computing. The survey found that just over half (50.2%) of respondents are aware of harvest now, decrypt later attacks. These attacks involve stealing encrypted data and storing it until a quantum computer is developed that can break the encryption.

26.6% of respondents said their organization has already conducted a risk assessment on quantum computing risks, while 18.4% plan to conduct an assessment within one year.

Additionally, 27.7% of respondents said their organization would be most likely to address quantum risks following regulatory pressure, while 20.7% cited leadership demand within the organization to enable the cryptographic agility which can address the algorithms made obsolete by quantum computing.

Read more:
Gamaredon continues to target Ukraine. RedLine stealer disguised as game cheats. Emotet's place in the malware landscape. Quantum computing risks. -...

Imagine what will happen if we robots can process information, store data and transfer the same at a pace at which humans do, will they not be as good as humans? Just to let you know we will touch on one aspect in this article (Quantum Computing) which takes care of processing information, however there is tremendous progress already made to store information like our DNA and also transmit the same like our nervous system does.

As the smartest creatures on Earth, our journey from the analogue to the digital world has been at a tremendous pace in the past decades.

There was a time, few decades ago, when invention of electronic calculator marked a major breakthrough in the world of technology. The transformational advancements of processing information since then have been remarkable. Undoubtedly, we have come a long way with smartphones, wearable and smart devices, shifting from press the keys to touch, swipe and speak.

With Artificial Intelligence (AI), Virtual Reality (VR), Internet of Things (IoT) and Metaverse being technological realities today, we are also heading towards a new era of data & computation called quantum computing.

Now, Whats That?

Well, quantum computing is a futuristic technology which employs the power of quantum mechanics for solving extremely complex problems that are beyond the capacity of classical computers. To define it simply, this computer-based technology functions around the quantum theory principals where behaviours of matter and energy are studied on the atomic and subatomic levels.

Supercomputers designed on quantum theory consume comparative less energy while operating at an exponentially higher speed.

This quantum computer implements the laws of quantum mechanism for such complex calculation which are much beyond human comprehensions.

Tech titans envision that humans will be accelerated into the future by quantum computing through its impact on data analytics and artificial intelligence. Its massive speed and power shall help us crack even the complex challenges that we, human beings, face.

In the Next Decades, What If I Say That Robots Can Become a Challenge to the Humans?

If thats going to happen, it would be for AI and quantum technology. Scientists have already started to research on bridging the two avenues quantum physics having its strong algorithms and artificial intelligence coupled with autonomous machines. They are investigating the ways to use quantum technology for the advantage of learning robots. So far, the results show that robots can decide faster.

#Case Study:

A team of experimental physicists led by Philip Walther from The University of Vienna collaborated with theoreticians from German Aerospace Center, the Austrian Academy of Sciences and University of Innsbruck. Together, for the first time, they succeeded in proving the increase in actual learning time of a robot. Their experiment included the use of fundamental particles of light, single photons and integrated photonic quantum processor. The researchers implemented learning tasks by using this processor as a robot. The result showed significant reduction in the learning time, compared to the no quantum physics cases.

Hence, artificial intelligence devices that are integrated with quantum computing are capable of self-correction and learning through experience, much like humans.

Sounds interesting?Let me make it more intriguing for you.

As the speed of quantum computing is significantly higher than the traditional machines, this could result in quantum robots if rapid responses are recorded. Such robots are envisioned to be highly advanced and way more sophisticated, with unparalleled capabilities of multitasking. Not just that, but they will also be able to fully examine and adapt to various environments for survival, becoming independently more creative and data processing at a greater speed.

Scientists also opine that the concept of technological singularity will be possible, which signifies machines will be more progressive and smarter than humans.

Upcoming: Robots with Human Intelligence

Yes! You read that right.

Plans are already on to build robots that would share similar values as well as rights like us. They will have the ability to understand the world like humans, have same feelings as well as emotional spectrum. Such human-like technology will profoundly change our relationship with technology and the world around us.

What next?

Remember the movie titled Transcendence? The protagonist uploads his consciousness into quantum computer and outsmarts death! Well, what you might have thought to be unrealistic then may not be so today. Popular predictions say that humans will soon become transhumans through the concept of virtual or digital immortality. We already have quantum computer amongst us, though not a consumer product, but commercially available.

How would this technology make it happen?

Well, going back to its definition again, quantum computers utilise quantum bits or qubits. These tiny physical objects help them cope with highly complex problems and extremely large volumes of data in less than a second. Hence, storing a humans memories and personality would be an effortless job for the quantum computers.

Recent breakthroughs show that narrow AI can perform certain tasks much better than humans. It wont be surprising to say that artificial intelligence will emulate the human skill, i.e. responding to various tasks, and thereby, put our race at a challenge in the future.

Coming back to digital immortality, it is a theoretical concept of transferring and storing an individuals consciousness into a robot, a virtual body or a computer. The required technology with appropriate hardware for this transfer is expected to arrive soon in this decade, although several milestones are needed to be achieved yet.

Digital Immortality: How far are we?

Once a persons consciousness is uploaded, it can be stored in two different ways:

From there, it can easily interact with the physical as well as the virtual worlds. The fascinating result would be that the persons consciousness will remain alive in a virtual space for thousands and thousands of years to come. Thats not all. He can also travel to various virtual worlds and download content for enriched experience. Being still alive, he can work with his own digital clones to accomplish essential jobs in real life faster.

Quite a far future though, the second instance says human beings will possibly grow or build completely new bodies. While models may vary with the type of technology used, the least expensive one could be machine-like or robotic in appearance.

Fast forwarding many decades from today, we might have these machines as highly expensive synthetic bodies similar to the real human bodies using several hi-tech features to enhance their mental and physical capabilities. Moving thousands of years further, the world might have so advanced synthetic bodies that their capabilities would probably exceed our wildest imaginations today. If need be, new versions of these bodies can also come up.

According to the predictions of renowned futurist, Ray Kurzweil, uploading the human mind would be possible in the next quarter century, though perfection might need a lot of time.

In a major breakthrough in research a year ago, one of the most complex organs, eyes of mice, were reprogrammed in a lab. If a human goes blind when older, he/she never recovers the vision. Hence, the experiment was done on one-year old mice using gene therapy where their retinas were turned to be young again. Three out of the four reprogramming factors were implemented. Scientists successfully reversed aging in their retinas taking those backwards to around two months old in age. The mice could clearly see everything again much, like they saw when young. Additionally, the system can be turned on and off whenever required. Scientists confirmed that this can be done with any tissue to reverse aging, not going back too far though.

Probably, the concept of death will vanish in a century or so owing to the dynamic evolution of technology. Humans will just be moving from one body to another, with their memory and consciousness stored in the form of data.

To say so, its just the beginning for us to understand what possibilities artificial intelligence have. Every new and successful experiment, thus, adds to the development of the scope of quantum computing. IBM believes that quantum computing will become the mainstream technology in probably the next 5 years. At this point, can we look back to our mythology and sum up that our culture has been talking about it since eons?

Food for thought:

In simple terms, History for which we dont have documented proof is called Mythology. Do you think we will need to document or even speak 100 years from now? We have already moved from paper documents to speaking in a mic and recording the artefacts, why is it not possible to just transfer thoughts from one person (robot) to another without any speech or text?

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Robots & Humans: Are we heading towards Singularity? - INDIAai

BOSTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Zapata Computing, the leading enterprise quantum software company, today announced that it has made significant headway in its mission to get the University of Hull quantum-ready for future space exploration. One year into the collaboration both teams have seen enough progress to extend their plans for expanding the search for indicators of life in deep space.

Together, Zapata and the University of Hull developed new techniques to extrapolate meaningful data from noisy quantum devices and used it to calculate the ro-vibrational spectrum of hydrogen to obtain results that are comparable with the state-of-the-art classical simulations, as well as the experimental results. The results obtained with these new quantum techniques can already be used to detect molecular hydrogen in space.

A big part of the progress is due to the University of Hulls successful migration of Big Compute capabilities from classical to quantum computers. Big Compute is Zapatas term for the market category for heterogeneous and distributed compute resources needed to address enterprise and other technologically advanced organizations most computationally complex problems. It builds on previous technical revolutions like Big Data and AI and leverages a wide spectrum of classical (e.g., GPU, TPU, CPU), high-performance (HPC) and quantum compute resources (e.g., quantum-inspired computers, NISQ devices, fault-tolerant quantum computers).

In practical terms, this means that when more powerful and fault-tolerant quantum computers are available, the team of scientists at the University of Hull will be able to greatly increase the range of their exploration, the complexity and number of molecules that they can search for, and the speed with which they analyze their findings as they search for life beyond planet Earth.

The scale of what we are trying to accomplish today is daunting, said Dr. David Benoit, senior lecturer in Molecular Physics and Astrochemistry at the University of Hull. There are over 16,000 different life-indicating molecules that were searching for in space, but we could increase our search significantly with quantum computers as they become more powerful in the future. And were going to need that power. Were not looking for a needle in a haystack here. That would be easy. This effort is more like looking for a speck of dust in a warehouse through a straw.

Throughout the project, the teams have achieved several new discoveries and scientific breakthroughs. These discoveries led them to expect that the quantum algorithm will scale better than the classical one in the future, making it possible to study larger molecules that would not be possible with a classical computer. Zapata Computing and the University of Hull also documented this research and recently published a paper regarding the findings titled, A pathway to accurate potential energy curves on NISQ devices. The teams will also share the overview of the project and the results of the first year of work at Quantum.Tech London in their presentation on September 20 titled, Using quantum computers to look for alien life in deep space.

The sheer scale of what the University of Hull is trying to accomplish technically is a clear indication that the need for Big Compute capabilities today are critical to prepare for the quantum future ahead, said Christopher Savoie, CEO and co-founder of Zapata Computing. Theres no question that the discovery of life in deep space is difficult, but its a challenge that is perfect for a quantum computer and there are steps that the University of Hull is taking, similar to those many enterprises are taking, to make iterative progress and prep for these more powerful machines as they come online.

For more information about the presentation at Quantum.Tech and Zapata Computing and its work with the University of Hull, please visit http://www.zapatacomputing.com or stop by the Zapata Computing Booth (A3) at Quantum.Tech London.

About Zapata Computing

Zapata Computing, Inc. is the leading enterprise quantum software company. The Companys Orquestra platform supports the research, development, and deployment of quantum-ready applications for enterprises most computationally complex problems. Zapata has pioneered new methods in ML, optimization, and simulation to maximize value from near-term quantum devices, and partners closely with ecosystem hardware providers such as Amazon, D-Wave, Google, Quantinuum, IBM, IonQ and Rigetti. Zapata was founded in 2017 and is headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts. For more information, visit http://www.zapatacomputing.com.

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Zapata Computing and The University of Hull Get Quantum-Ready For Ongoing Search for Life in Space - Business Wire

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Singapore Management University is a place where high-level professionalism blends together with a healthy informality. The 'family-like' atmosphere among the SMU community fosters a culture where employees work, plan, organise and play together building a strong collegiality and morale within the university.

Our commitment to attract and retain talent is ongoing. We offer attractive benefits and welfare, competitive compensation packages, and generous professional development opportunities all to meet the work-life needs of our staff. No wonder, then, that SMU continues to be given numerous awards and recognition for its human resource excellence.

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The candidate will be responsible for conducting research on quantum rare event models in financial markets. Successful candidate will be part of an active research team led by Assoc. Prof Paul Griffin from School of Computing and Information Systems, Singapore Management University. Candidates core responsibilities are:

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Research Fellow, School of Computing and Information Systems job with SINGAPORE MANAGEMENT UNIVERSITY | 301029 - Times Higher Education

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Quantum Computing in Chemistry Market to Witness Huge Growth in Coming Years With Profiling Leading Companies: IBM, Google, D-Wave Solutions,...

VANCOUVER Researchers have made a breakthrough in quantum technology development that has the potential to leave todays supercomputers in the dust, opening the door to advances in fields including medicine, chemistry, cybersecurity and others that have been out of reach.

In a study published in the journal Nature on Wednesday, researchers from Simon Fraser University in British Columbia said they found a way to create quantum computing processors in silicon chips.

Principal investigator Stephanie Simmons said they illuminated tiny imperfections on the silicon chips with intense beams of light. The defects in the silicon chips act as a carrier of information, she said. While the rest of the chip transmits the light, the tiny defect reflects it back and turns into a messenger, she said.

There are many naturally occurring imperfections in silicon. Some of these imperfections can act as quantum bits, or qubits. Scientists call those kinds of imperfections spin qubits. Past research has shown that silicon can produce some of the most stable and long-lived qubits in the industry.

"These results unlock immediate opportunities to construct silicon-integrated, telecommunications-band quantum information networks," said the study.

Simmons, who is the university's Canada Research Chair in silicon quantum technologies, said the main challenge with quantum computing was being able to send information to and from qubits.

"People have worked with spin qubits, or defects, in silicon before," Simmons said. "And people have worked with photon qubits in silicon before. But nobody's brought them together like this."

Lead author Daniel Higginbottom called the breakthrough "immediately promising" because researchers achieved what was considered impossible by combining two known but parallel fields.

Silicon defects were extensively studied from the 1970s through the '90s while quantum physics has been researched for decades, said Higginbottom, who is a post-doctoral fellow at the university's physics department.

"For the longest time people didn't see any potential for optical technology in silicon defects. But we've really pioneered revisiting these and have found something with applications in quantum technology that's certainly remarkable."

Although in an embryonic stage, Simmons said quantum computing is the rock 'n' roll future of computers that can solve anything from simple algebra problems to complex pharmaceutical equations or formulas that unlock deep mysteries of space.

"We're going to be limited by our imaginations at this stage. What's really going to take off is really far outside our predictive capabilities as humans."

The advantage of using silicon chips is that they are widely available, understood and have a giant manufacturing base, she said.

"We can really get it working and we should be able to move more quickly and hopefully bring that capability mainstream much faster."

Some physicists predict quantum computers will become mainstream in about two decades, although Simmons said she thinks it will be much sooner.

In the 1950s, people thought the technology behind transistors was mainly going to be used for hearing aids, she said. No one then predicted that the physics behind a transistor could be applied to Facebook or Google, she added.

"So, we'll have to see how quantum technology plays out over decades in terms of what applications really do resonate with the public," she said. "But there is going to be a lot because people are creative, and these are fundamentally very powerful tools that we're unlocking."

This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 14, 2022.

Hina Alam, The Canadian Press

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Old computer technology points the way to future of quantum computing - Alberta Prime Times

Israeli Team8 venture group officially opened this years Cyber Week with an event that took place in Tel Aviv on Sunday. The event, which included international guests and cybersecurity professionals, showcased the country and the industry as a powerhouse in relation to Startup Nation.

Opening remarks were made by Niv Sultan, star of Apple TVs Tehran, who also moderated the event. She then welcomed Gili Drob-Heinstein, Executive Director at the Blavatnik Interdisciplinary Cyber Research Center (ICRC) at Tel Aviv University, and Nadav Zafrir, Co-founder of Team8 and Managing Partner of Team8 Platform to the stage.

I would like to thank the 100 CSOs who came to stay with us, Zafrir said on stage. Guests from around the world had flown into Israel and spent time connecting with one another ahead of the official start of Cyber Week on Monday. Team8 was also celebrating its 8th year as a VC, highlighting the work it has done in the cybersecurity arena.

The stage was then filled with Admiral Mike Rogers and Nir Minerbi, Co-founder and CEO of Classiq, who together discussed The Quantum Opportunity in computing. Classical computers are great, but for some of the most complex challenges humanity is facing, they are not suitable, said Minerbi. Quantum computing will revolutionize every large industry.

Classiq develops software for quantum algorithms. Founded in 2020, it has raised a total of $51 million and is funded by Team8 among other VC players in the space. Admiral Mike Rogers is the Former Director of American agency the NSA and is an Operating Partner at Team8.

We are in a race, Rogers told the large crowd. This is a technology believed to have advantages for our daily lives and national security. I told both presidents I worked under why they should invest billions into quantum, citing the ability to look at multiple qubits simultaneously thus speeding up the ability to process information. According to Rogers, governments have already publicly announced $29 billion of funding to help develop quantum computing.

Final remarks were made by Renee Wynn, former CIO at NASA, who discussed the potential of cyber in space. Space may be the final frontier, and if we do not do anything else than what we are doing now, it will be chaos 100 miles above your head, she warned. On stage, she spoke to the audience about the threats in space and how satellites could be hijacked for nefarious reasons.

Cybersecurity and satellites are so important, she concluded. Lets bring the space teams together with the cybersecurity teams and help save lives.

After the remarks, the stage was then transformed to host the evenings entertainment. Israeli-American puppet band Red Band performed a variety of songs and was then joined by Marina Maximilian, an Israeli singer-songwriter and actress, who shared the stage with the colorful puppets.

The event was sponsored by Meitar, Delloitte, LeumiTech, Valley, Palo Alto, FinSec Innovation Lab, and SentinelOne. It marked the beginning of Cyber Week, a three-day conference hosted by Tel Aviv University that will welcome a variety of cybersecurity professionals for workshops, networking opportunities, and panel discussions. It is understood that this year will have 9,000 attendees, 400 speakers, and host people from 80 different countries.

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Red Band performing 'Seven Nation Army'.

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Quantum computing will revolutionize every large industry - CTech

COLLEGE PARK, Md.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--IonQ (NYSE: IONQ), an industry leader in quantum computing, today announced promising early results with its partner, GE Research, to explore the benefits of quantum computing for modeling multi-variable distributions in risk management.

Leveraging a Quantum Circuit Born Machine-based framework on standardized, historical indexes, IonQ and GE Research, the central innovation hub for the General Electric Company (NYSE: GE), were able to effectively train quantum circuits to learn correlations among three and four indexes. The prediction derived from the quantum framework outperformed those of classical modeling approaches in some cases, confirming that quantum copulas can potentially lead to smarter data-driven analysis and decision-making across commercial applications. A blog post further explaining the research methodology and results is available here.

Together with GE Research, IonQ is pushing the boundaries of what is currently possible to achieve with quantum computing, said Peter Chapman, CEO and President, IonQ. While classical techniques face inefficiencies when multiple variables have to be modeled together with high precision, our joint effort has identified a new training strategy that may optimize quantum computing results even as systems scale. Tested on our industry-leading IonQ Aria system, were excited to apply these new methodologies when tackling real world scenarios that were once deemed too complex to solve.

While classical techniques to form copulas using mathematical approximations are a great way to build multi-variate risk models, they face limitations when scaling. IonQ and GE Research successfully trained quantum copula models with up to four variables on IonQs trapped ion systems by using data from four representative stock indexes with easily accessible and variating market environments.

By studying the historical dependence structure among the returns of the four indexes during this timeframe, the research group trained its model to understand the underlying dynamics. Additionally, the newly presented methodology includes optimization techniques that potentially allow models to scale by mitigating local minima and vanishing gradient problems common in quantum machine learning practices. Such improvements demonstrate a promising way to perform multi-variable analysis faster and more accurately, which GE researchers hope lead to new and better ways to assess risk with major manufacturing processes such as product design, factory operations, and supply chain management.

As we have seen from recent global supply chain volatility, the world needs more effective methods and tools to manage risks where conditions can be so highly variable and interconnected to one another, said David Vernooy, a Senior Executive and Digital Technologies Leader at GE Research. The early results we achieved in the financial use case with IonQ show the high potential of quantum computing to better understand and reduce the risks associated with these types of highly variable scenarios.

Todays results follow IonQs recent announcement of the companys new IonQ Forte quantum computing system. The system features novel, cutting-edge optics technology that enables increased accuracy and further enhances IonQs industry leading system performance. Partnerships with the likes of GE Research and Hyundai Motors illustrate the growing interest in our industry-leading systems and feeds into the continued success seen in Q1 2022.

About IonQ

IonQ, Inc. is a leader in quantum computing, with a proven track record of innovation and deployment. IonQ's current generation quantum computer, IonQ Forte, is the latest in a line of cutting-edge systems, including IonQ Aria, a system that boasts industry-leading 20 algorithmic qubits. Along with record performance, IonQ has defined what it believes is the best path forward to scale. IonQ is the only company with its quantum systems available through the cloud on Amazon Braket, Microsoft Azure, and Google Cloud, as well as through direct API access. IonQ was founded in 2015 by Christopher Monroe and Jungsang Kim based on 25 years of pioneering research. To learn more, visit http://www.ionq.com.

IonQ Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains certain forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. Some of the forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of forward-looking words. Statements that are not historical in nature, including the words anticipate, expect, suggests, plan, believe, intend, estimates, targets, projects, should, could, would, may, will, forecast and other similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. These statements include those related to IonQs ability to further develop and advance its quantum computers and achieve scale; IonQs ability to optimize quantum computing results even as systems scale; the expected launch of IonQ Forte for access by select developers, partners, and researchers in 2022 with broader customer access expected in 2023; IonQs market opportunity and anticipated growth; and the commercial benefits to customers of using quantum computing solutions. Forward-looking statements are predictions, projections and other statements about future events that are based on current expectations and assumptions and, as a result, are subject to risks and uncertainties. Many factors could cause actual future events to differ materially from the forward-looking statements in this press release, including but not limited to: market adoption of quantum computing solutions and IonQs products, services and solutions; the ability of IonQ to protect its intellectual property; changes in the competitive industries in which IonQ operates; changes in laws and regulations affecting IonQs business; IonQs ability to implement its business plans, forecasts and other expectations, and identify and realize additional partnerships and opportunities; and the risk of downturns in the market and the technology industry including, but not limited to, as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. The foregoing list of factors is not exhaustive. You should carefully consider the foregoing factors and the other risks and uncertainties described in the Risk Factors section of IonQs Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended March 31, 2022 and other documents filed by IonQ from time to time with the Securities and Exchange Commission. These filings identify and address other important risks and uncertainties that could cause actual events and results to differ materially from those contained in the forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date they are made. Readers are cautioned not to put undue reliance on forward-looking statements, and IonQ assumes no obligation and does not intend to update or revise these forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise. IonQ does not give any assurance that it will achieve its expectations.

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IonQ and GE Research Demonstrate High Potential of Quantum Computing for Risk Aggregation - Business Wire