Alice & Bob
announced the construction of a $50 million quantum computing laboratory in
Paris to support the development of its products. The company has selected
Quantum Machines, provider of hybrid control solutions, and Bluefors, a
cryogenic systems manufacturer, as partners to equip this cutting-edge
facility.
Designed to be one
of Europe's most advanced QPU (Quantum Processing Unit) development facilities,
the new lab will enable Alice & Bob's next-gen quantum chip series:
Lithium, Beryllium and Graphene. This 4,000 m2 purpose-built product
development hub is funded by the company's recent $103 million Series B round.
The facility is designed to host a nanofabrication cleanroom for the
prototyping of advanced QPUs. Experimentation on these chips is enabled by
Quantum Machines control solutions and a cryostat farm designed to host 20
Bluefors dilution refrigerators.
"Our
state-of-the-art product development lab will serve as a cornerstone of French
quantum infrastructure and as a blueprint of how to build industrial-scale tech
in Europe," said Théau Peronnin, CEO of Alice & Bob. "As our company's
focus is shifting from pure research to commercialization, our lab will enable
Alice & Bob to create technology that can be tested by actual clients and
end users."
A dedicated area
of the cryostat farm is reserved for the installation of the company's
large-scale quantum computer Graphene, a 100-logical-qubit quantum computer
planned for 2030. With modern offices built to accompany the lab, the new
facility will also foster cross-disciplinary exchange through common areas for
workshops and brainstorming. Alice & Bob's new laboratory will allow the
company to turn its quantum chips, powered by proprietary cat qubit technology,
into market-ready products.
Quantum computers
built on cat qubits scale more efficiently due to the modality's unique ability
to suppress bit-flip errors. Alice & Bob's goal is the creation of more
powerful quantum computers at a fraction of the footprint, hardware and energy
resources needed for competing quantum computing players.
"As the
control provider for more than half of companies developing quantum computers
globally, we're involved in many ambitious initiatives," said Dr. Itamar Sivan,
co-founder and CEO of Quantum Machines. "This lab stands out as one of the most
innovative projects. Alice & Bob's hardware-efficient approach creates a
unique path to fault-tolerant quantum computing that could dramatically reduce
the resources needed for utility scale quantum error correction."
"Alice & Bob's
hardware-efficient cat qubit is a very interesting application for Bluefors
cryogenic solutions, which also support more stable and efficient quantum
systems," said David Gunnarson, Bluefors' Chief Technology Officer. "We are
excited to work with Alice & Bob to deploy our dilution refrigerator
measurement systems to push quantum technology even further, underscoring our
commitment to advance the quantum computing industry with cryogenic systems of
the highest standard."
"This facility
marks a major milestone for the French quantum industry," said François
Charbonnier, Investment Director at Bpifrance. "By anchoring its accelerated
quantum chip development cycle in Paris, Alice & Bob is positioning itself
- and Europe - as a leader in delivering real-world breakthroughs."