Genaro Costa, HPC Expert, Atos, Big Data & Security
The Quantum shift is coming
Quantum computing has the potential to change the world as we know it by spurring breakthroughs in various scientific and industrial domains. It will solve complex problems faster and tackle the sophisticated scientific or industrial issues which have been uncharted in human history. The undeniable use cases have been witnessed in various domains for the early adopters, e.g. financial modeling where quantum can speed up the financial modeling in the Monte Carlo model, which gauges the probability of various outcomes and related risk in financial choices. Other use cases are explored as molecule simulation, route optimization (using combinatory optimization), or for governments who gain advantages in the military, accelerated data analysis, and improving cyber-security [1].
The quantum race is on around the world
The North America and Europe regions are spearheading quantum inroads thanks to both large corporations and numerous start-ups. Various technologies and algorithms are exploited backed up with substantial investments from private funds and government initiatives. To unlock the transformative power of quantum, the commission of the European High-Performance Computing (HPC) Joint Undertaking (EuroHPC JU) is now planning to build state-of-the-art pilot quantum computers by 2023. These computers would act as accelerators interconnected with the Joint Undertaking’s supercomputers, forming ‘hybrid’ machines that blend the best of quantum and classical computing technologies. The French government pledged a €1.8 billion five-year plan aiming to finance research in quantum computing, communications, and sensing. At the center stage, Atos has been actively participating in the EuroHPC JU with multiple HPC deployed in various super-computing centers, as well as in committing to deliver its hybrid quantum accelerated HPC in 2023.
Emerging nations are no laggers
To nobody’s surprise, emerging nations are also positioned as the powerhouses for the quantum race. China is among the leading countries on system innovation, although much of the work coming out of China is more secretive as they are interconnected with China’s government. Scientists in India have already started to undertake large-scale quantum projects. Last year, India gave quantum technology a $1.07 billion boost as part of its National Mission on Quantum Technologies and Applications, coordinating stakeholders from across industry, research, and government to spur development in quantum computing, cryptography, communications, and materials science. In South America, there are strong research capabilities and an abundance of resourceful talent that are exploiting quantum infrastructure. Quantum Computing Group, headed by a team of top researchers and adjunct professors that lead a group of collaborators from the University of Latvia, the University of the Republic, Uruguay, and a cadre of enthusiastic Ph.D. students, the lab is fully stocked on qubit brain cells to carve out enough quantum creativity for the rest of the 21st century [2]. Initiatives from Brazil, in the Rio de Janeiro state, are also surfing on the quantum wave.
Worth mentioning is that Atos and SENAI CIMATEC, one of Brazil’s leading education, research and innovation institutes, have set up Brazil’s first Center of Excellence in Quantum Computing dedicated to the business sector. Located in Salvador, Bahia, the Latin America Quantum Computing Center (LAQCC) aims to promote the adoption of quantum technologies, provide training to build a local quantum computing workforce, and encourage scientific research in the most diverse areas, such as chemistry and biology. The LAQCC will host Brazil’s first Atos Quantum Learning Machine (Atos QLM), the world’s most powerful quantum simulator. The LAQCC will enable business users to build technological road maps and conduct impact studies, algorithm investigations, and applied research projects. to stimulate scientific research and entrepreneurship.
The infrastructure and services provided by this new Center of Excellence should empower the Brazilian quantum ecosystem to grow, stimulate scientific research and entrepreneurship to prepare Latin America for the quantum era while a quantum community is coalescing around newly available opportunities in the field.
[1] TBR – Quantum Computing Market Landscape, Dec 2020.