The business application of quantum computing

Although it is still in its infancy and yet to achieve a commercial application, quantum technology holds much promise. In the near future, quantum computers will be able to help accelerate the pace of solving complex problems in conjunction with classical computers. In this section, you will learn about the business applications of this wonderful technology.

Global players in the quantum computing domain across the value chain

According to a McKinsey report (Quantum computing funding remains strong, but talent gap raises concern, https://tinyurl.com/5d826t55), quantum technology has attracted a total investment of $700 million from various governments and funding agencies. The promise shown by this technology has prompted the industry to fund ongoing research in various universities and labs. D-Wave was the first company to pioneer the quantum computing solution in 1999, through quantum annealing. Since then, other companies such as IBM have built a robust community of researchers and end users alike to propagate the use of quantum computers. The following is a brief list of the companies doing pioneering work in the field of quantum technology:

• IonQ (NASDAQ: IONQ): IonQ was founded in 2015 by Christopher Monroe and Jungsang Kim. IonQ has received total funding of $432 million. IonQ builds quantum computers based on ion trap technology. It provides quantum computers as Platform as a Service (PaaS) to service providers.
• Rigetti (NASDAQ: RGTI): Rigetti Computing was founded in 2013 by Chad Rigetti. It has currently received funding of $500 million. Rigetti has developed a quantum computer based on superconducting technology.
• Quantum Computing Inc.: Quantum Computing Inc. focuses on providing software and hardware solutions to the end user. It is also focusing on developing business use cases for companies, thus showcasing the potential of quantum computing in the near future.
• Archer (ASX: AXE): Archer is an Australian company that is conducting research on developing a quantum computer at room temperature. It was founded by Dr. Mohammad Choucair. It aims to produce a quantum computer that can have a widespread reach.
• D-Wave (coming soon via SPAC merger): D-Wave is credited with introducing the world’s first quantum computer for commercial use. It uses the quantum annealing technique to develop quantum solutions for the end user. It offers a limited but powerful piece of technology with 5,000 qubits of quantum computer at its disposal, which has a lot of potential business applications.
• Quantinuum: Quantinuum was formed as a result of a merger between Cambridge Quantum and Honeywell Quantum Solutions. While the primary focus of Cambridge Quantum was on developing the operating system and software for quantum computers, Honeywell has focused primarily on developing the quantum computer using ion trap technology.

Global players across the value chain in the quantum computing domain include giants such as IBM, Microsoft, and Google, and well-funded start-ups such as Rigetti, IQM, and Quantinuum. These companies have invested in different types of technologies (hardware as well as software) to catapult the research in this technology domain.

In the subsequent segment, we will evaluate the roadmap provided by different technology giants to achieve full-scale quantum supremacy.

Building a quantum computing strategy implementation roadmap

Building quantum advantage to solve real-time business problems is the end goal of many companies operating in the quantum realm. This technology is perceived to aid companies in solving large-scale problems. Recently, BMW has commissioned a million-dollar challenge to discover a solution to its inventory scheduling problem using the AWS Amazon Braket platform. In Figure 1.9, you can chart the route that could potentially lead to the era in which quantum supremacy can be achieved, and see how we can solve more problems using quantum computing:

Figure 1.9 – Quantum computing era

Broadly, the quantum era can be divided into three parts:

• Noisy intermediate-scale quantum (NISQ): This era is marked by the availability of a lesser number of good-quality qubits (<50 to 100) to solve real-world problems. The word noisy refers to the tendency of the qubits to lose their quantum state due to disturbances. It is expected that the current technology setup will be able to come out of the NISQ era by 2030.
• Broad quantum advantage: IonQ has defined the broad quantum advantage as the advent of the era where quantum computers are available for developers and end users to solve real-life problems. Based on the consensus developed by industry practitioners, 72-qubit systems will start aiding the industry in solving commercial-grade problems. Thus, it will be possible in the future to access the platform enabled by demonstrating high-level application programming and HMI functions.
• Full-scale fault tolerance: This era refers to large-scale quantum computers that have achieved two-qubit gate fidelity of 99.5%. By 2040, it is expected that the existing efforts will help in solving the problem of decoherence (leakage of information due to large numbers of qubits), and will enable organizations to take full advantage of this amazing technology.

Quantum technology in the near term is available for end users in the form of hybrid computing. To harness the full potential of existing quantum computers, players such as D-Wave and Rigetti have started providing an interface between classical and quantum computing via microprocessors. While classical components take care of communication with end users, quantum microprocessors are used in solving NP-hard problems. Quantum technology, through quantum annealers and universal quantum computers, and using technologies such as superconducting and ion trap, will be able to harness its full potential in the near future.

In the next section, let’s have a look at what kind of people are needed to build quantum technology and its ecosystem.

Building a workforce for a quantum leap

Quantum technology needs a variety of people in the workforce to harness its true potential. The entire technology stack can be divided into hardware, software, and related technologies. Currently, the technology has called for scientific research and technology implementation experts. According to a survey report prepared by Forbes, a graduate must have a primary degree in STEM to understand the basic workings of quantum computers. A research-oriented mindset is essential to further investigate the development of quantum computers. To achieve scientific breakthroughs related to the development of computer hardware, a researcher must have a deep understanding of the underlying technologies such as annealing, superconducting, and ion trap. These technologies are at the forefront of the scientific breakthroughs that can be achieved with the help of a knowledgeable workforce.

In addition to building a quantum computer, it is also challenging to operate one. The current focus of software development is to write low-level programs that can interface with the memory core of the quantum computer. IBM and Google are among the companies that have developed Python-based software development toolkits (SDKs) such as Qiskit and Cirq. Programs such as IBM Summer School are good starting points for developers to get acquainted with the methodology of software interfacing with quantum memory processors. Due to the limitations of the current technology in the quantum field, a lot of emphasis is given to developing a hybrid computer. A software developer needs to know about cloud computing to operate a quantum computer. Most quantum computers are nested in big rooms at below-freezing temperatures, and can be accessed remotely using cloud computing. The algorithms written for quantum computers are also used to boost the performance of existing machine learning algorithms.

Quantum solutions also include aided technologies, making quantum technologies an exciting field to work in. Quantum sensors, annealers, and the internet are the potential applications of quantum mechanics. In addition, quantum algorithms have also shown promise in solving problems related to finance, supply chain, healthcare, and cryptography. Figure 1.8 summarizes the discussion related to the aptitudes and qualifications related to starting a career in the field of quantum technologies:

Figure 1.10 – List of qualifications

From Figure 1.10, it can be observed that a potential candidate for quantum technologies needs some background in STEM. Research aptitude and a capacity to learn, unlearn, relearn, and apply new concepts are a must to sustain in this dynamic field. Since it’s a research-oriented field, companies’ inclination is more toward inducting doctoral candidates from relevant fields. However, there is a significant demand for software engineers who can write code for hybrid computers to solve problems in a faster and more accurate way.