Quantum computing – the end game approaches
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Two quantum computing innovators are vying to be the first to produce large scale, commercial error corrected machines in a move that marks the end game for the technology.
PsiQuantum has $1 billion for its Series E round to build the world’s first commercially useful, fault-tolerant quantum computers. The funding brings the total to $2.8bn, with each round being eye-watering in scale.
Founded by Australian and UK academics, the company is set to break ground on utility-scale quantum computing sites in Brisbane and Chicago and deploy large-scale prototype systems to validate the architecture and integration of its photonic chips.
This week US/UK venture Quantinuum also announced it has raised $600m from parent company Honeywell for its Helios system that is set to ship later this year using ion trap technology that operates at close to absolute zero.
Last week Europe’s leading quantum computer firm IQM in Finland, also raised €275m ($350m) in its Series B round.
These deals mark out the companies as leading players in quantum computing and the deals fire the gun on the consolidation phase for the rest of the industry.
“Only building the real thing—million-qubit-scale, fault-tolerant machines—will unlock the promise of quantum computing,” said Prof. Jeremy O’Brien, PsiQuantum co-founder and Chief Executive Officer and a former professor at the University of Bristol in the UK. “We defined what it takes from day one: this is a grand engineering challenge, not a science experiment. We tackled the hardest problems first—at the architectural and chip level—and are now mass-manufacturing best-in-class quantum photonic chips at a leading US semiconductor fab [GlobalFoundries].”
“Nearly nine years after we started, we have pushed the technology to an unprecedented level of maturity and performance” said Dr. Pete Shadbolt, co-founder and Chief Scientific Officer from University College London. “We have the chips, we have the switches, we have a scalable cooling technology, we can do networking, we have found the sites, we have the commercial motive and the government support – we’re ready to get on and build utility-scale systems”
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The valuations differ, reflecting the different histories. The funding for Quantinuum comes from corporate parent Honeywell, with a valuation of $10bn that reflects the corporate backing.
The PsiQuantum finding comes from venture sources, including funds and accounts managed by affiliates of the world’s largest asset manager BlackRock, along with Temasek and Baillie Gifford. This has a lower, but perhaps more honest, valuation of $7bn.
Quantinuum has pushed the full stack approach, merging with UK software firm Cambridge Quantum Computing in 2021 to provide hardware, firmware, developer software and specialist quantum applications such as InQuanto, which is why one of the key shareholders is global bank JPMorganChase.
“Quantinuum continues to meet and exceed our stated objectives — strategically, technically and commercially. We have complete confidence in Quantinuum’s ability to continue to lead the quantum revolution and create long-term value for its investors and customers,” said Vimal Kapur, Chairman and CEO of Honeywell, who is overseeing the splitting up of the parent company into three separate operations. Quantinuum will need to deliver the return on the high valuation as the market moves forward.
Quantinuum recently announced partnerships and collaborations with Japanese research lab Riken, SoftBank, and ion trap supplier Infineon Technology. Both companies are also working with Qatar and the STFC Hartree Centre in the UK.
These deals and valuations leave the competition in the dust. IonQ in the US understood this, moving fast to acquire key quantum processor technology maker Oxford Ionics for $1bn and two quantum networking companies. Just this year it has raised $1.32bn in two separate deals.
IBM is perhaps the outlier, with its own plans to spend an eye-watering $150bn on the technology. It has an ambitious roadmap and its own datacentres and mainframes to host its quantum chips, with 100m error corrected gates in 2029.
Meanwhile Europe is still putting together its Quantum Strategy as the world marches past. IQM in Finland has twice raised the largest funding in Europe for quantum, with the latest €275m ($350m) Series B round last week bringing the total raised to over €450m. It has been shipping commercial systems and is planning a fully error corrected quantum computer with 300qubits in the next 18 months, highlighting quite how far it still has to go.
Similarly Oxford Quantum Circuits (OQC) in the UK has been the country’s leading sovereign quantum computing system developer, and is still looking to raise $100m in its Series B round on top of $47m back in 2022 to be one of the buyers rather than the bought.
Despite its innovative dual rail quantum architecture that has allowed it to ship a commercial system to Japan it has also stumbled with its delivery in recent months, with a change of CEO and changes to the board of directors.
Nvidia is the main winner in this end game. Despite Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang’s ill-fated comments on the prospects of quantum computing earlier this year that sent the share prices of companies plummeting, Nvidia is now heavily involved with both PsiQuantum and Quantinuum through its venture capital arm, and works with OQC in the UK and Equal1 in Ireland.
Qatar is also an investor in PsiQuantum, where the photonic approach means the company does not depend on the “chandelier”-style cryostats frequently used in quantum computing and has designed and commissioned a new high-density cooling system similar to the modular racks found in a datacentre. This has the capacity to cool hundreds of quantum chips in a single cabinet, and can connect with high-fidelity quantum networking between distant cabinets using standard telecom fibre.
Quantum generative AI
This is very different from the hype around AI with billions of dollars being pledged for AI datacentres. It also provides competition with generative AI being demonstrated on quantum systems that uses fraction of the energy of the silicon-based chips.
“This goes beyond what is possible with AI,” says Luke Ward, private companies investment manager at UK fund Baillie Gifford. “PsiQuantum is now positioned at the forefront of what could be a trillion-dollar industry, able to solve some of humanity’s biggest challenges.”
“We first backed PsiQuantum over six years ago, recognising its unique approach to scaling quantum computing. Since then, the company has consistently hit technical milestones while forging deep partnerships across industry and government. With a vision rooted in practicality,
www.psiquantum.com; www.quantinuum.com; www.oqc.tech; www.meetiqm.com; www.ionq.com; www.ibm.com
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