Category Archives: Quantum Computing

Multiverse Computing Introduces a New Version of their Singularity Portfolio Optimization Software

We reported in August 2021 about a new software program from Multiverse Computing called Singularity. This program has an interesting characteristic in that it is implemented as an Excel plug-in that make it easy and quick for an inexperienced end user to try without requiring them to learn a lot about quantum computing. They have now released an update to this program that includes Singularity Portfolio Optimization v1.2 that supports a variety of modes including a Multiverse Hybrid mode, a D-Wave Leap Hybrid mode, and a pure classical solver. The program also can accept a variety of constraints while performing the optimizations including investors level of risk aversion, resolution of asset allocation, minimum and maximum allowable investment per asset, and others. The portfolio optimizer uses Multiverses hybrid solver for its core algorithms and the company indicates it can produce results competitive to classical solvers in a shorter period of time. The program is hardware agnostic and can be used with a variety of different quantum processors as well as quantum-inspired and classical configurations. Additional information about this new version of Singularity is available in a news release posted on the Multiverse website here.

August 28, 2022

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Multiverse Computing Introduces a New Version of their Singularity Portfolio Optimization Software - Quantum Computing Report

Facebook and Twitter take down pro-Western influence campaign

Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, Twitter, and Telegram disrupted a pro-Western influence campaign focused on promoting U.S. interests abroad, according to a report from Graphika and the Stanford Internet Observatory. The accounts used in the influence operation targeted the Middle East and Central Asia, frequently criticized Russia over the war in Ukraine, and often shared content from U.S. government-affiliated news outlets such as Voice of America and Radio Free Europe. Some of the accounts appear to be part of the Trans-Regional Web Initiative, a propaganda operation run by U.S. Special Operations Command active for over a decade. The campaign is the first publicly known, U.S.-run influence operation on social media. The campaign does not appear to have been very effective, as most posts received only a handful of likes or retweets, and only 19 percent of accounts had more than one thousand followers.

Ransomware gang attacks UK water organization

The ransomware gang Cl0p said it had infected a major water treatment company, South Staffordshire Water, in the United Kingdom. Cl0p first infected the systems of South Staffordshire on August 15, although there was some initial confusion as the gang believed it had compromised the systems of a larger utility, Thames Water, which serves most of southeast England. Cl0p did not deploy ransomware on the network, citing ethical concerns, but instead stole data and threatened further consequences unless a ransom is paid. The hackers may have gained access to the industrial control systems of South Staffordshire. Attacks on water systems have become increasingly common in recent years, and in some cases these attacks could have caused active harm to civilians.

Lloyds of London Excludes State-Sponsored Cyberattacks from Insurance

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Lloyds of London, a major insurance market in England, announced that it will not allow insurers to cover catastrophic cyberattacks perpetrated by nation-states as of March 31, 2023. Lloyds currently defines a catastrophic cyberattack as an attack that will significantly impair the ability of a state to function or... that significantly impairs the security capabilities of a state. While some have praised the move to greater clarity on what will not be covered, others have noted that that Lloyds standard of catastrophic is vague and that cyberattacks are often difficult to attribute to a specific nation-state conclusively. In recent years, insurance companies have grappled with how to address major cyberattacks, and, in December 2021, Lloyds announced the exclusion of nation-state-led attacks from policies held in a small subset of countries, China, France, Japan, Russia, the United Kingdom and the United States, although it appears this exclusion has not been tested yet.

Former Twitter head of security turns whistleblower

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Twitters former head of security Pieter Zatko, also known as Mudge, filed a whistleblower complaint against the company earlier this week. Zatko made a series of claims about the state of Twitters security, including that Twitter unknowingly employs agents of foreign nations, deleted data may still be accessible, and that the loss of a few key data centers could permanently take down the entire site. Zatko also alleged that Twitters security practices violated an agreement with the Federal Trade Commission that prohibited Twitter from misleading user about its security or privacy practices. Zatko, who developed L0phtCrack in 1997, a password-recovery tool still in use in an updated form today, is well-respected in the cybersecurity community for his work over the past three decades. Zatkos disclosures will likely affect the court case between Twitter and Elon Musk over whether the tech entrepreneur can back out of his bid to buy the company without significant penalty, although experts are divided as to whether Zatkos disclosures will help or hurt Twitter.

Baidu unveils first quantum computer

Chinese internet company Baidu announced it had built its first quantum computer on Thursday this week. The computer, dubbed Qianshi, has a ten qubit processor, significantly behind Googles Sycamore at fifty four qubits, and Zuchongzi from the University of Science and Technology of China at sixty six qubits. Baidu said that it had also developed a thirty six qubit processor, although it appears that processor has not been used yet. Quantum computing has been a major research focus for China, the United States, and European Union in recent years, as each country has poured billions of dollars into research on quantum computing. The Biden administration recently announced a series of initiatives aimed at growing quantum research in the United States.

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Cyber Week in Review: August 26, 2022 - Council on Foreign Relations

Quantum Computing refers to a new form of computation based on quantum physics. It is expected to outperform classical computers in processing data and deriving optimisation from it. This technology can be widely adopted in the environmental sector, including enhancing the performance of energy sources and optimising urban planning.

The classical computers that we use in our daily lives are beneficial to the development of humanity. Yet, these are being slowly substituted by increasingly sophisticated machines.

One problem that classical computers are so bad at solving is optimisation. For instance, how many possible combinations are there to configure the seats of 10 people around a table? The answer is 10, equivalent to about 3.6 million combinations. When the number of seats keeps increasing, the number of possible combinations multiplies. In order to find the optimal arrangement of the seats, we first need a list of criteria that determines the optimal arrangement. However, the most energy- and time-consuming part is that the classical computers need to simulate each combination to generate a result. Depending on the scale of the data, it may take an extremely long time for classical computers to generate a result. Yet, quantum computers have the potential to solve problems in just minutes.

The basic unit of information for classical computers is called a binary digit also commonly known as bit. A bit is either 1 or 0. If there are two bits in a row, there will be four possible combinations 00, 01, 10, and 11. Therefore, classical computers need to simulate four times to generate a result.

On the other hand, the basic unit of information for quantum computers is called a qubit. A qubit is not either 1 or 0. Instead, it exists in a superposition of 1 and 0. In other words, it is simultaneously a 1 and a 0. Therefore, two qubits in a row are in a superposition of four states 00, 01, 10, and 11. Why is it revolutionary? Well, being in a superposition of all states suggests that, theoretically, quantum computers are only required to simulate once to generate a result. It only takes a few attempts to find the optimal arrangement of 10 seats within more than 3.6 million combinations.

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Quantum computing can be adopted in any field that requires optimisation; it can be about enhancing the performance of an energy source as well as about developing a smart city where the consumption of energy is minimised.

One example is the quadratic assignment problem (QAP), a mathematical problem that classical computers perform badly. Suppose there are n of facilities and n of locations, and you are required to configure one facility in each location to minimize the consumption of energy. Logically, if we need to transport frequently a lot of goods between two facilities, we would like to place them closer, and vice versa. A study has compared the performance of a quantum computer and a classical computer in solving the quadratic assignment problem by giving them data from 20 facilities and locations. As a result, the quantum computer generated an accurate answer in about 700 seconds whereas the classical computer failed to do so within the time limit of 12 hours. This study demonstrates the huge potential of quantum computing to optimize urban planning to minimize the consumption of energy.

In addition to its functions, quantum computing by itself is an environmentally friendly technology. According to a study jointly published by NASA, Google, and Oak Ridge National Laboratory, a quantum computer required only 0.002% of the energy consumed by a classical computer to perform the same task. The energy consumed by computers is enormous; not including the energy consumed by normal peoples computers and smartphones, data centres themselves already account for more than 1% of global electricity. If data can be stored in terms of qubits, we can save up a huge amount of energy.

The worlds most powerful quantum computer now is the Eagle, developed by the International Business Machines Corporation (IBM) with a capacity of 127 qubits. However, scientists suggest that quantum computers are not commercially useful if their capacity does not reach at least 1,000 qubits. The slow development of quantum computers is mainly due to the technical difficulties in building them.

Scientists are required to manipulate particles as small as electrons in order to make qubits. Electrons need to be maintained in coherence, meaning the state in which the waves of the electrons can coherently interfere with each other. Yet, electrons are highly sensitive to the outside environment, like noise and temperature. Therefore, the manufacturing of qubits is usually done in an isolated environment from the outside world that runs at near absolute zero. Since the movement of atoms is at their lowest state of energy at absolute zero, keeping the electrons at such a temperature helps them to be stable and less affected by the outside environment. This is a way to mitigate the occurrence of decoherence. Yet, we still do not have a clear method to correct decoherence when it occurred because exterior interference may destroy the remaining coherence of other electrons.

Although quantum computing is still at the stage of development, we have already witnessed an enormous improvement in this field since its birth as a theory in the 1980s. Quantum Computing may be the next greatest advancement in humanity, from developing medicines for different incurable diseases by tracking the molecular data of human bodies that classical computers cannot do, to optimising the energy efficiency of cities, countries, and even the world.

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What is Quantum Computing and How Can it Help Mitigate Climate Change? - EARTH.ORG

[Editors note: Quantum Computing Will Be Bigger Than the Discovery of Fire! was previously published in June 2022. It has since been updated to include the most relevant information available.]

Its commonly appreciated that the discovery of fire was the most profound revolution in human history. And yesterday, I read that a major director at Bank of America (BAC) thinks a technology that hardly anyone is talking about these days could be more critical for humankind than fire!

Thats about as bold of a claim as you could make when it comes to technological megatrends. If true, this tech could be the most promising and lucrative investment opportunity of anyones lifetime.

The directors name? Haim Israel, head of global thematic investing research at BofA.

In his words, this technology could create a revolution for humanity bigger than fire, bigger than the wheel.

What on Earth is Mr. Israel talking about?

Two words: Quantum Computing.

Ill start by saying that the underlying physics of this breakthrough quantum mechanics is highly complex. It would likely require over 500 pages to fully understand.

But, alas, heres my best job at making a Cliffs Notes version in 500 words instead.

For centuries, scientists have developed, tested, and validated the laws of the physical world, known as classical mechanics. These scientifically explain how and why things work, where they come from, so on and so forth.

But in 1897, J.J. Thomson discovered the electron. And he unveiled a new, subatomic world of super-small things that didnt obey the laws of classical mechanics at all. Instead, they obeyed their own set of rules, which have since become known as quantum mechanics.

The rules of quantum mechanics differ from that of classical mechanics in two very weird, almost-magical ways.

First, in classical mechanics, objects are in one place at one time. You are either at the store or at home, not both.

But in quantum mechanics, subatomic particles can theoretically exist in multiple places at once before theyre observed. A single subatomic particle can exist in point A and point B at the same time until we observe it. And at that point, it only exists at either point A or point B.

So, the true location of a subatomic particle is some combination of all its possible positions.

This is called quantum superposition.

Second, in classical mechanics, objects can only work with things that are also real. You cant use an imaginary friend to help move the couch. You need a real friend instead.

But in quantum mechanics, all those probabilistic states of subatomic particles are not independent. Theyre entangled. That is, if we know something about the probabilistic positioning of one subatomic particle, then we know something about the probabilistic positioning of another. That means these already super-complex particles can actually work together to create a super-complex ecosystem.

This is called quantum entanglement.

So, in short, subatomic particles can theoretically have multiple probabilistic states at once. And all those probabilistic states can work together again, all at once to accomplish some task.

Pretty wild, right?

It goes against everything classical mechanics had taught us about the world. It goes against common sense. But its true. Its real. And, now, for the first time ever, we are leaning how to harness this unique phenomenon to change everything about everything

This is why Mr. Israel is so excited about quantum computing. Its why he thinks it could be more revolutionary than the discovery of fire or the invention of the wheel.

I couldnt agree more.

Mark my words. Over the next few years, everything will change because of quantum mechanics. And some investors are going to make a lot of money.

The study of quantum theory has led to huge advancements over the past century. Thats especially true over the past decade. Scientists at leading tech companies have started to figure out how to harness the power of quantum mechanics to make a new generation of super quantum computers. And theyre infinitely faster and more powerful than even todays fastest supercomputers.

In Mr. Israels own words: By the end of this decade, the amount of calculations that we can make [on a quantum computer] will be more than the atoms in the visible universe.

Again, the physics behind quantum computers is highly complex. But once again, heres my Cliffs Notes version.

Todays computers are built on top of the laws of classical mechanics. That is, they store information on what are called bits, which can store data binarily as either 1 or 0.

But what if you could turn those classical bits into quantum bits qubits to leverage superpositioning to be both 1 and 0 stores at once?

Further, what if you could leverage entanglement and have all multi-state qubits work together to solve computationally taxing problems?

Theoretically, youd create a machine with so much computational power that it would make todays most advanced supercomputers seem ancient.

Thats exactly whats happening today.

Google has built a quantum computer thats about 158 million times faster than the worlds fastest supercomputer.

Thats not hyperbole. Thats a real number.

Imagine the possibilities behind a new set of quantum computers 158 million times faster than even todays fastest computers

Wed finally have the level of AI that you see in movies. The biggest limitation to AI today is the robustness of machine learning algorithms, which are constrained by supercomputing capacity. Expand that capacity, and you get infinitely improved machine learning algos and infinitely smarter AI.

We could eradicate disease. We already have tools like gene editing. But its effectiveness relies of the robustness of the underlying computing capacity to identify, target, insert, cut, and repair genes. Insert quantum computing capacity, and all that happens without error in seconds allowing us to fix anything about anyone.

We could finally have that million-mile EV. We can only improve batteries if we can test them. And we can only test them in the real world so much. Therefore, the key to unlocking a million-mile battery is through simulation. And the quickness and effectiveness of simulations rest upon the robustness of underlying computing capacity. Make that capacity 158 million times bigger, and cellular simulation will happen 158 million times faster.

The economic opportunities here are truly endless.

One issue I have with emerging technological breakthroughs is that theyre usually focused on solving tomorrows problems. And we need tools to solve todays problems.

But quantum computing doesnt have that focus. Instead, it could prove mission-critical in helping us solve todays problems.

Lets revisit the making of a million-mile EV.

Were amid a global energy crisis defined by soaring oil prices. As a result, were all paying $5-plus per gallon for gas. Thats unreal. And its hurting everyone.

Of course, the ultimate fix is for everyone to buy electric vehicles. But EVs are technologically limited today. On average, they max out at about 250 miles of driving range. And theyre also pretty expensive.

Quantum computing could change that. It could allow us to create a million-mile EV rather soon. And through material simulation and battery optimization modeling, itd also dramatically reduce the costs of EV manufacturing.

In other words, with the help of quantum computing, we could be just years away from $15,000 EVs that can drive up to 1,000 miles on a single charge.

Indeed, auto makers like Hyundai (HYMTF) and Volkswagen (VWAGY) are already using quantum computers to make next-gen high-performance, low-cost EVs. These are EVs that actually drive as far as your gas car and cost less than it, too!

And those are the vehicles that will change the world, not todays $70,000 Teslas or $100,000-plus Lucid (LCID) cars. The EVs that will change the world will drive 1,000-plus miles and cost less than $15,000.

Quantum computing is the key to making those EVs.

Alas, I repeat: Quantum computing isnt a science-fiction project that will help the world in 10 years. Its a breakthrough technology that can help solve the worlds problems today!

And the most pertinent application? Electric vehicles.

Quantum computing is the most underrated, most transformational technological breakthrough since the internet.

In fact, it may be bigger than the internet. As Mr. Israel said, it may bigger than the discovery of fire itself.

The first tangible, value-additive application of quantum computing technology electric vehicles.

We truly believe that quantum computing will meaningfully accelerate the EV Revolution. Over the next few years, it will help to develop new EVs that last forever and cost next to nothing.

Forget Tesla. Focus on the next wave of EV makers that will make these quantum-enabled cars.

Believe it or not, one of those companies is Apple (AAPL).

Yep. You read that right. The worlds largest company is reportedly preparing to launch an electric vehicle very soon. Given its expertise in creating home-run-hit hardware products, we think Apples EV will drive us into an electric future.

And guess what? We found a $3 stock that we believe will become the exclusive supplier of the Apple cars most important technology.

According to our numbers, it could soar 40X from current levels.

Not 10X, 20X, or 30X 40X a potential investment that turns every $10,000 into $400,000.

Needless to say, its an opportunity that you need to hear about today.

On the date of publication, Luke Lango did not have (either directly or indirectly) any positions in the securities mentioned in this article.

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Quantum Computing Will Be Bigger Than the Discovery of Fire! - InvestorPlace

By Carolyn Mathas

The UK touts itself as a world leader in quantum technologies and the truth is, they actually are. At the center of the UKs quantum effort is coming at the technology from a national position. The UK has been very strong where academia meets industry, and the country has a good track record of funding and then commercializing research. Much effort has lately been spent on training those that have little experience of computer engineering and recruiting mathematicians and computer scientists who are unfamiliar with quantum technologies, and the efforts are bearing fruit.

One organization, UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) is the largest public funder of research and innovation in the UK, is armed with a budget of more than 8 billion. UKRI is comprised of seven disciplinary research councils, Research England and Innovate UKhome to the industrial challenge on quantum.

The Quantum Technologies Challenge at UKRI was launched in 2018 under the Industrial Strategy Challenge Fund, receiving 173 million of funding. It provides catalytic grant funding for strategic collaborative projects and in doing so we encourage companies to work closely with universities and with each other. This community has, in three years, created new companies, launched new products and raised hundreds of millions of pounds of investment. Its success is linked to:

According to Roger McKinlay,Commercialising Quantum TechnologiesChallengeDirector for UKRI. On a global scale, were seeing enormous capital private capital flowing in. There is a vibrant community of start-up companies that are aiming to build the quantum computers of the future emerging predominantly from the UKs academic sector and driving excellent technical work. They are starting to raise significant investment on the back of robust and credible business models. Compared to a year ago, more money is flowing into quantum start-ups partly through collaborative research projects funded by government-backed programs, but also from increased interest among investment firms.

Increased interest has been driven in part by the mergerbetween UKs Cambridge Quantum and Honeywell Quantum Solutions that formed the worlds largest integrated quantum-computing company called Quantinuum. Other start-up firms report increased interest from venture capitalists, which together with government R&D grants is allowing even very young companies to expand rapidly.

When comparing the UKs efforts to the U.S., Youre in a slightly different situation in the US, because we dont have those tech giants. In the UK we must allow private investors the freedom to invest in what they need have to win, otherwise the UK wont be attractive. However, you also must publicly invest to keep a seat at the table so that the UK is getting sovereign control over what it needs to influence standards and to attract the right talent. This is a difficult game is and its a highly national-specific game, McKinlay explained.

While clearly the UKs efforts under UKRI have been successful, there is now uncertainty as to how it will be able to retain its research efforts and its researchers.

Theres a perfect storm brewing surrounding the funding of the UKs scientific community. Against the backdrop of the Prime Minister Boris Johnson stepping down and Science Minister George Freemans resignation, both posts are unfilled until September. Economically, the country is, along with the rest of the world, facing the inflation in 40 years, as energy costs continue to soar.

The major issue, of course, is access to the EUs flagship research program Horizon Europe. There was a deal between the UK and the EU on the table for the past two years. It enabled the UK to be an associate member of Horizon Europe. This gave UK researchers equal rights to those researchers in EU countries. Negotiations have faltered based on politics between the UK and the EU over a border implementation between the Republic of Ireland, a part of the EU and Northern Ireland, a part of the UK. Whats at stake if negotiations fail is daunting, and includes:

Based on the failed negotiations, the UK created a Plan B alternative to Horizon Europe, publishing details in apolicy paper, titledSupporting UK R&D and Collaborative Research Beyond European Programmes.

The UK, however, consistently maintains that it does not want to leave Horizon programs as it will clearly hamstring its research efforts in the near term. For example, it will take a lot of time and work to form new relationships and begin collaborating with such other countries as Australia, Japan, India, etc. as well as maintaining collaboration within the companies and countries in Europe.

What is likely, however, is that nothing will happen until a new Prime Minister is seated. At that point, the future of UKs Horizon access is likely to be announced, or the UKs international research program, Plan B will go forward.

Amid all of the uncertainty, the UK is still well-positioned to be a major player in the quantum industry. It has been doing over the past two years what several countries are just beginning. Its infrastructure to succeed is in place. Could the Horizon uncertainty cause a ripple in the UKs efforts? Of course. But its one that they will likely iron out quickly.

August 22, 2022

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Amid Challenges, the UK Government Continues to Fund Quantum Success - Quantum Computing Report

SAN SEBASTIN, SPAINAugust 16, 2022Multiverse Computing, a quantum computing solutions company, and IKERLAN, a center in technology transfer value to industry, have released the results of a joint research study that detected defects in manufactured car pieces via image classification by quantum artificial vision systems.

The research team developed a quantum-enhanced kernel method for classification on universal gate-based quantum computers as well as a quantum classification algorithm on a quantum annealer. Researchers found that both algorithms outperformed common classical methods in the identification of relevant images and the accurate classification of manufacturing defects.

To the best of our knowledge, this research represents the first implementation of quantum computer vision for a relevant problem in a manufacturing production line, said Ion Etxeberria, CEO of IKERLAN. This collaborative study confirmed the benefits of applying quantum methods to real-world industrial challenges. We strongly believe that quantum computing will play a key role in providing AI-based solutions to particularly complex scenarios.

Quantum machine learning will significantly disrupt the automotive and manufacturing industries, said Roman Orus, Ph.D., Chief Scientific Officer at Multiverse Computing. We are pleased to witness the value of early applications quantum computing today, such as quantum artificial vision, and excited to enter a new era of machine learning alongside forward-thinking partners like IKERLAN as quantum technology continues to advance.

The co-authored paper, titled Quantum artificial vision for defect detection in manufacturing, shows examples of the images analyzed by the quantum algorithms and further details the context, metrics and methods used by the researchers and can be downloadedhere.

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Multiverse Computing and IKERLAN Detect Defects in Manufacturing with Quantum Computing Vision - High-Performance Computing News Analysis | insideHPC...

A public-private agency that helps Canadian organizations shift to technologies that protect their encrypted data from being broken by quantum computers has been given a federal grant of $675,000 to help its work.

Public Safety Canada said Tuesday that the money going to Quantum-Safe Canada will support its work to prepare the countrys critical infrastructure for the quantum threat.

Organizations that hold encrypted data include governments, financial institutions, energy providers, research facilities, telcos, and manufacturers of sensitive products.

Quantum computers capable of breaking current encryption may be years away but organizations have to start preparing now, agency executive director Michele Mosca said in an interview.

And now means they should have their transition plans to quantum-safe solutions finished by next year. Thats because standardized quantum-resistant encryption algorithms are expected to be approved by the U.S. National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) in 2024, so high-risk organizations can begin their transition. That will include selecting solution providers and testing their solutions.

Related content: NIST names first four quantum-resistant tools

The top critical infrastructures with a big IT footprint really should be wrapping up their preparation and assessment phase in a year or so and be starting the roadmapping by 2024. By that year, things will start kicking into gear on the solutions side. The standardized algorithms will be ready and there will be no need to delay, Mosca noted.

Countries not necessarily friendly to the West, including China and Russia, are pouring hundreds of millions into quantum computing research. No one is quite sure when they will be able to produce a machine that can crack current encryption.

Related content: Montreal firm delivers quantum computer

But, Mosca said, given the time it will take for organizations to migrate to quantum-resistant solutions, they cant wait until one is churning away.

You have to at least tentatively pick a date by which you want your systems ready. You have to look at your risk tolerance, and if its less than 10 per cent meaning a 10 per cent chance of broken encryption will cause the firm serious damage you really want to have migrated within 10 years.

Some people may not want even a one per cent chance, in which case they have to do something faster, he added.

Major governments are aiming to transition their critical applications by the early 2030s, he pointed out. That may be nine years away, but Mosca warned it will take a lot of work to upgrade systems.

Dont forget, he added, the Canadian, U.S. and other governments have already decided to migrate their systems to quantum-safe solutions.

Related content: Companies warned in 2019 to start working on quantum-resistant solutions

Quantum-Safe Canada is a not-for-profit whose governing board includes Sami Khoury, head of the federal governments Canadian Centre for Cyber Security; Robert Gordon, former executive director and currently strategic advisor of the Canadian Cyber Threat Exchange; Vanda Vicars, chief operating officer of the Global Risk Institute in Financial Services; and consultant Brian OHiggins, an expert in public-key infrastructure.

Mosca, who also sits on the board, is a co-founder of the Institute for Quantum Computing and a professor at the University of Waterloo, as well as a co-founder of a quantum software startup called EvolutionQ.

There are four steps to quantum readiness, he said: Understanding what the problem is, understanding what it means to the organization and its peers, planning and testing quantum-safe solutions and, finally, deploying the solutions.

The funds announced Tuesday are small compared to the monies available in the public and private sectors for fundamental quantum research, he said. But money for awareness is vital.

This particular grant will help the energy and finance sectors understand the early preparation steps we neglect and wish [later] we had done.

The funds will also be spent to help identify the skills needed for the transition and implementation stages so vendors, colleges and universities can train and expand the workforce.

Its not just a few computer science programmers writing code that will be needed, he stressed. Project planners, managers, system integrators, experts in risk assessments, business analysts and more will be needed. And it wouldnt necessarily mean years of training. It could mean adding an extra course to a college degree, he added.

The federal funds come from Ottawas Cyber Security Co-operation Program, which was launched in 2019 under the National Cyber Security Strategy. Through the program, $10.3 million in funding was allocated to support projects that contribute to positioning Canada as a global leader in cyber security.

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Canadian non-profit gets funding to raise awareness of quantum computing threat - IT World Canada

By firing a Fibonacci laser pulse at atoms inside a quantum computer, physicists have created a completely new, strange phase of matter that behaves as if it has two dimensions of time.

The new phase of matter, created by using lasers to rhythmically jiggle a strand of 10 ytterbium ions, enables scientists to store information in a far more error-protected way, thereby opening the path to quantum computers that can hold on to data for a long time without becoming garbled. The researchers outlined their findings in a paper published July 20 in the journal Nature (opens in new tab).

The inclusion of a theoretical "extra" time dimension "is a completely different way of thinking about phases of matter," lead author Philipp Dumitrescu, a researcher at the Flatiron Institute's Center for Computational Quantum Physics in New York City, said in a statement. "I've been working on these theory ideas for over five years, and seeing them come actually to be realized in experiments is exciting."

Related: Otherworldly 'time crystal' made inside Google quantum computer could change physics forever

The physicists didn't set out to create a phase with a theoretical extra time dimension, nor were they looking for a method to enable better quantum data storage. Instead, they were interested in creating a new phase of matter a new form in which matter can exist, beyond the standard solid, liquid, gas, plasma.

They set about building the new phase in the quantum computer company Quantinuum's H1 quantum processor, which consists of 10 ytterbium ions in a vacuum chamber that are precisely controlled by lasers in a device known as an ion trap.

Ordinary computers use bits, or 0s and 1s, to form the basis of all calculations. Quantum computers are designed to use qubits, which can also exist in a state of 0 or 1. But that's just about where the similarities end. Thanks to the bizarre laws of the quantum world, qubits can exist in a combination, or superposition, of both the 0 and 1 states until the moment they are measured, upon which they randomly collapse into either a 0 or a 1.

This strange behavior is the key to the power of quantum computing, as it allows qubits to link together through quantum entanglement, a process that Albert Einstein dubbed "spooky action at a distance." Entanglement couples two or more qubits to each other, connecting their properties so that any change in one particle will cause a change in the other, even if they are separated by vast distances. This gives quantum computers the ability to perform multiple calculations simultaneously, exponentially boosting their processing power over that of classical devices.

But the development of quantum computers is held back by a big flaw: Qubits don't just interact and get entangled with each other; because they cannot be perfectly isolated from the environment outside the quantum computer, they also interact with the outside environment, thus causing them to lose their quantum properties, and the information they carry, in a process called decoherence.

"Even if you keep all the atoms under tight control, they can lose their 'quantumness' by talking to their environment, heating up or interacting with things in ways you didn't plan," Dumitrescu said.

To get around these pesky decoherence effects and create a new, stable phase, the physicists looked to a special set of phases called topological phases. Quantum entanglement doesn't just enable quantum devices to encode information across the singular, static positions of qubits, but also to weave them into the dynamic motions and interactions of the entire material in the very shape, or topology, of the material's entangled states. This creates a "topological" qubit that encodes information in the shape formed by multiple parts rather than one part alone, making the phase much less likely to lose its information.

A key hallmark of moving from one phase to another is the breaking of physical symmetries the idea that the laws of physics are the same for an object at any point in time or space. As a liquid, the molecules in water follow the same physical laws at every point in space and in every direction. But if you cool water enough so that it transforms into ice, its molecules will pick regular points along a crystal structure, or lattice, to arrange themselves across. Suddenly, the water molecules have preferred points in space to occupy, and they leave the other points empty; the spatial symmetry of the water has been spontaneously broken.

Creating a new topological phase inside a quantum computer also relies on symmetry breaking, but with this new phase, the symmetry is not being broken across space, but time.

Related: World's 1st multinode quantum network is a breakthrough for the quantum internet

By giving each ion in the chain a periodic jolt with the lasers, the physicists wanted to break the continuous time symmetry of the ions at rest and impose their own time symmetry where the qubits remain the same across certain intervals in time that would create a rhythmic topological phase across the material.

But the experiment failed. Instead of inducing a topological phase that was immune to decoherence effects, the regular laser pulses amplified the noise from outside the system, destroying it less than 1.5 seconds after it was switched on.

After reconsidering the experiment, the researchers realized that to create a more robust topological phase, they would need to knot more than one time symmetry into the ion strand to decrease the odds of the system getting scrambled. To do this, they settled on finding a pulse pattern that did not repeat simply and regularly but nonetheless showed some kind of higher symmetry across time.

This led them to the Fibonacci sequence, in which the next number of the sequence is created by adding the previous two. Whereas a simple periodic laser pulse might just alternate between two laser sources (A, B, A, B, A, B, and so on), their new pulse train instead ran by combining the two pulses that came before (A, AB, ABA, ABAAB, ABAABABA, etc.).

This Fibonacci pulsing created a time symmetry that, just like a quasicrystal in space, was ordered without ever repeating. And just like a quasicrystal, the Fibonacci pulses also squish a higher dimensional pattern onto a lower dimensional surface. In the case of a spatial quasicrystal such as Penrose tiling, a slice of a five-dimensional lattice is projected onto a two-dimensional surface. When looking at the Fibonacci pulse pattern, we see two theoretical time symmetries get flattened into a single physical one.

"The system essentially gets a bonus symmetry from a nonexistent extra time dimension," the researchers wrote in the statement. The system appears as a material that exists in some higher dimension with two dimensions of time even if this may be physically impossible in reality.

When the team tested it, the new quasiperiodic Fibonacci pulse created a topographic phase that protected the system from data loss across the entire 5.5 seconds of the test. Indeed, they had created a phase that was immune to decoherence for much longer than others.

"With this quasi-periodic sequence, there's a complicated evolution that cancels out all the errors that live on the edge," Dumitrescu said. "Because of that, the edge stays quantum-mechanically coherent much, much longer than you'd expect."

Although the physicists achieved their aim, one hurdle remains to making their phase a useful tool for quantum programmers: integrating it with the computational side of quantum computing so that it can be input with calculations.

"We have this direct, tantalizing application, but we need to find a way to hook it into the calculations," Dumitrescu said. "That's an open problem we're working on."

Originally published on Live Science.

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Scientists blast atoms with Fibonacci laser to make an "extra" dimension of time - Livescience.com

Uncertainty was a key theme in the past week as the summer rally seemed to run out of steam.

As tempting as it is to follow the day-to-day movements of the market, investors would be better served to think long term and pick their stocks accordingly.

Here are five stocks chosen by Wall Street's top pros, according to TipRanks, a platform that ranks analysts based on their performance.

Computer technology firm IonQ (IONQ) has progressed significantly through the second quarter of this year, according to a recent research report from Needham analyst Quinn Bolton.

Important contracts, reinforced guidance for the full year, and other key developments were made in the second quarter. (See IonQ Earnings Date & Reports on TipRanks). Earlier this year, IonQ also launched its 32-qubit quantum computer, Aria.

Bolton notes that the company's strong balance sheet "should enable them to reach broad quantum advantage and become a positive cash flow generator without having to raise additional capital." Given the current market conditions and high cost of borrowing, this is good news.

The analyst also believes that the Aria 32-qubit will help IonQ achieve consistent system scaling and revenue bookings. Also, encouraged by the company's competitive edge provided by its trapped ion approach to quantum computing, Bolton believes that IonQ stands to benefit from the increasing popularity of the quantum industry and the growing investments being made to boost it.

Bolton reiterated a buy rating on IonQ with a price target of $9.

Bolton has a No.1 position among more than 8,000 analysts tracked on TipRanks. He has also had 73% success with his ratings, generating an average return of 45.2%.

Cyxtera (CYXT) is a provider of data center colocation and interconnection services for service providers, enterprises and government institutions. The company, like most of its peers in the tech sector, has been suffering from a challenging macro environment.

Moreover, in its recent second-quarter report, Cyxtera lowered its full-year 2022 guidance after factoring in foreign exchange headwinds, macroeconomic setbacks, delays in the implementation of its new Northern California data center and unfavorable timing for certain cost recoveries. (See Cyxtera Blogger Opinions & Sentiment on TipRanks).

However, RBC Capital analyst Jonathan Atkin pointed out a few upsides to the company's growth, which indicates that the CYXT stock can be a compelling buy for the longer-term.

The most important secular growth driver, according to Atkin, is the growing demand for data and connectivity as new technology and associated applications start rolling out. Additionally, the analyst also mentioned "rapid growth in IT outsourcing, data usage, and cloud and hybrid growth as enterprises realize digital transformation goals" as other positive factors.

Although current market conditions and operational environment prompted Atkin to decrease his price target to $14 from $16, he reiterated a buy rating on Cyxtera.

Atkin is currently at No. 11 among approximately 8,000 analysts tracked on the platform. Moreover, 78% of his ratings have been profitable, garnering 15.8% returns per rating on average.

The next on our list is the largest microchip manufacturer in the U.S., GlobalFoundries (GFS). The company recently beat its second-quarter goals, amid concerns of a demand slowdown in the consumer-exposed end markets like smartphones and PCs.

Reiterating a buy rating, Deutsche Bank analyst Ross Seymore explained that its increasing long-term agreement pipeline, focus on expanding its single-source business, growth in profitable unit volume, and meaningfully lower capital risk are expected to lift investor confidence in the stock. (See GlobalFoundries Stock Investors sentiments on TipRanks).

The analyst also raised the price target to $65 from $60 after attending the Analyst Day event held by Global Foundries following the Q2 print. Seymore was encouraged by "the company's ability to weather a macro/sector-specific slowdown while delivering continued increases in profitability driven by ASP growth, new single-sourced DWINs, and disciplined cost & OpEx management."

Seymore's track record gives us a solid reason to trust his research and opinion. At No.4 among more than 8,000 analysts followed on TipRanks, the analyst has a success rate of 80% on his ratings, generating average returns of 25.9%.

Retail chain Walmart's (WMT) recently released quarterly results reflected the resilience that consumers showed amid precarious market conditions. Not only that, operational improvements, continuous scaling of alternative income streams, and an innovative growth strategy are helping Walmart stay afloat.

Following the print, Baird analyst Peter Benedict reinforced a buy rating on the WMT stock and kept the price target at $140. (See Walmart Hedge Fund Trading Activity on TipRanks).

Benedict notes that Walmart's progress in optimizing inventory is a positive. "Looking ahead, additional pricing actions planned for 3Q should help WMT further right-size inventory levels/mix across 2H," the analyst wrote.

Moreover, Benedict also acknowledged the current leadership's efforts to keep Walmart ahead of others in the constantly evolving retail landscape. "CEO Doug McMillon's bold strategy to reshape WMT into a more nimble, fully integrated omni-channel retailer has generated real momentum across the business at a time when many traditional retailers are losing relevancy with consumers," the analyst said.

Benedict holds the No.77 position among around 8,000 analysts tracked on the platform. Moreover, his ratings have been successful 71% of the time, generating average returns of 16.1%.

Continuing our focus on the retail sector, leading home improvement chain Home Depot (HD) is another company that is on the buy list of Peter Benedict. The company also delivered upbeat second-quarter results alongside its peer Walmart.

Benedict believes that the management's unchanged outlook for the second half of this year reflects the possibility that the company expects some protection from any significant change in price-related demands through the rest of this year. (See Home Depot Stock Chart, Price History & Graphs on TipRanks).

The analyst is also confident that the company's strategic investments will bear fruit. "While HD has been realizing benefits from several of its strategic investments (front-end redesign/in-store navigation, merchandising resets, online assortment expansion, faster fulfillment options), momentum should continue to build as HD leverages its ecosystem of capabilities to deliver a seamless (and more personalized) shopping experience," said Benedict.

Reiterating a buy rating on Home Depot and raising the price target to $360 from $335, Benedict anticipates that the strategic investments made by the company last year will bolster its leadership position in the market and lead to share gains.

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Wall Streets top analysts say these are their favorite stocks right now - CNBC

NEW DELHI: India is witnessing a boom in deeptech startups in niche areas like cybersecurity, quantum computing, AI and semiconductor, and the country is now home to more than 3, 000 such startups that raised $2.7 billion in 2021 -- a 1.6 times growth over 2020 -- a new Nasscom report said on Monday.

The country added over 210 deeptech startups in 2021 alone, and Bengaluru and Delhi-NCR are leading them in the country, according to a Nasscom-Zinnov report.

"The Indian deeptech ecosystem has also fortified the job creation with over 4, 000 people being employed across 14 potential deeptech unicorns and is expected to increase by 2X in headcount by 2026, " said Debjani Ghosh, President, Nasscom.

The country is now home to 500 inventive deeptech startups, creating workforce across technologies such as drones, robotics, 3D printing and AI -- with the potential to develop new intellectual properties backed by scientific advances and fundamental research.

The deeptech ecosystem has grown at a staggering rate of 53 per cent CAGR in the last 10 years, growing at par with the Indian tech startups.

Nearly 70-75 per cent deeptech startups have at least 15 per cent of their workforce skilled in deep technologies, the report mentioned.

"Strategic partnership with the government, academia, global investors, streamlined corporate collaboration and dedicated test-bed programmes can create a massive impact on India's deeptech story, " said Ghosh.

Although in a nascent stage compared to the US, Europe, Israel and China, the Indian deeptech ecosystem is expanding fast.

The industry is witnessing more start-ups emerging to solve global mega challenges of clean tech, zero hunger, smart cities and climate actions, the report said.

In 2021, over 270 unique startups raised $2.7 billion across 319 deals, with AI and big data and analytics being the top technologies raising equity investments.

The seed stage startups have witnessed a 2.3 times growth in equity investments in 2021, as compared to 2020, raising a total of $186 million funding in 2021.

Among verticals, supply chain management (SCM) and logistics were the most funded sectors in 2021, with deeptech startups raising funding across use cases like drone delivery, autonomous delivery bots, cold chain monitoring and fleet management, the report noted.

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India now home to 3K deeptech startups that raised $2.7bn in 2021 - Punjab News Express