Atom Computing, a quantum computing firm, has announced the development of a quantum computing machine with unrivaled capabilities. The Phoenix system, which is in its initial iteration, can hold up to 100 qubits and is touted to be ‘exceptionally’ stable with lengthy coherence periods, allowing for high performance. Separately, the firm reported the receipt of approximately $15 million in Series A investment and the appointment of a new CEO.
With optical tweezers, Atom Computing’s Phoenix can capture 100 atomic qubits (of an alkaline earth element) in a vacuum container. Lasers are then used to alter the quantum states of atomic qubits. Atom Computing’s Phoenix, according to the firm, is ideal for complicated calculations since its qubits are exceptionally robust and have very long coherence times (over 100 ms).
Using optical tweezers to manipulate atomic qubits in a vacuum environment is not a novel concept. Although Honeywell sells similar devices, their quantum computers only have six qubits. According to Atom Computing, their laser technology and platform design enable the scalability of the number of qubits to 100 units. The firm must, however, demonstrate such a system.
“The development of quantum computing has advanced to the point that it is no longer a decade away. Because of our systems’ scalability and reliability, we are certain that we will be able to lead the industry to genuine quantum advantage “Atom Computing’s CEO and President, Rob Hays, stated. “We’ll be able to solve complicated problems that were previously impossible to handle with traditional computing, even with Moore’s Law’s exponential performance improvements and massively scalable cluster designs.”
Atom Computing announced that it has raised $15 million in Series A investment from venture capital companies Venrock, Innovation Endeavors, and Prelude Ventures, in addition to providing the first information about its Phoenix quantum computing system. The funds will go toward the construction of the Phoenix quantum computing system.
Rob Hays has also been named CEO and President of the firm. Hays previously worked at Intel for 20 years, establishing the company’s Xeon roadmap. Later in his career, he worked at Lenovo, where he established the company’s data center product and service strategy.
