
French quantum champion to set up Canada factory

Pasqal in France is to build a quantum computer factory in Canada to supply the North American market.
Pasqal has already demonstrated its capability to operate with more than 300 qubits and its next generation devices will deliver a 1,000 qubit quantum computer next year.
The factory at Espace Quantique 1 of DistriQ, the Quantum Innovation Zone in Sherbrooke, Canada, will produce hardware for the North American market to accelerate the adoption of neutral atoms quantum computing in the region.
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Pasqal Canada will develop commercial applications with partners in multiple areas including smart cities, energy, and materials science. Current customers include BMW, BASF, Johnson & Johnson, Siemens, Airbus, LG Electronics and Thales among many others.
Pasqal’s quantum technology uses highly focused lasers, “optical tweezers”, to trap and manipulate neutral atoms individually to create 1D and 2D arrays in arbitrary configurations. In these quantum processors, each quantum bit (qubit) is encoded into two energy levels of an atom, each atom in these arrays represents a qubit.
Pasqal will install its quantum computer production to open in Q3 in a 4,600 square metre centre.
“This location is ideal to catalyze PASQAL’s collaborations with academic institutions and industries in North America, ensuring a sustainable development in the growing quantum computing market,” said Raphaël de Thoury, CEO of PASQAL Canada. “The ecosystem in Sherbrooke, fostered by the dynamism of DistriQ – Quantum Innovation Zone in Sherbrooke, is fertile ground for quantum industrial companies like PASQAL. DistriQ is unique, as it is gathering the key leading players in the value chain, from science to industrial applications.”
