IBM, AMD and Oak Ridge Team Up to Fix Quantum Computing's Biggest Problem: Errors

IBM, AMD and Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) on Thursday launched a joint platform aimed at solving quantum computing machines' tendency to make errors.

Quantum computers harness the behaviour of subatomic particles to solve problems conventional machines cannot. However, their calculations are extremely fragile and prone to mistakes.

Quantum and classical computing, working together

The new platform pairs IBM's quantum computers, including its most powerful quantum chip, the 120-qubit Nighthawk, with ORNL's Umbra supercomputer powered by AMD's Instinct graphics processors and EPYC central processors.

Together, the systems let researchers test ways to spot and fix quantum errors, combining classical and quantum computing resources to advance error correction.

The platform will connect to the Oak Ridge Leadership Computing Facility in Tennessee, allowing researchers to study tighter integration between quantum and classical computing resources.

A long way to a useful quantum computer

The effort supports a US Department of Energy goal to build a scientifically useful quantum computer by late 2028. IBM said ongoing experiments are roughly 230 times short of that target.

In May, IBM said it plans to invest more than $10 billion in quantum computing as it aims to build the first large-scale quantum computer by 2029.

Sources

• Reuters — IBM, AMD, Oak Ridge National Laboratory launch quantum error correction platform