Quantum computers theoretically could rapidly find answers to problems that regular computers would take eons to solve, but they have to first overcome their error-prone nature. Now quantum computing firm Quantinuum says their machines can, for the first time, run all the operations needed to answer otherwise intractable questions in an error-compensating way. Quantum computers perform calculations using components known as qubits, which are highly unstable in nature. Present-day, state-of-the-art quantum computers typically suffer roughly one error every 1,000 operations. In contrast, many practical applications for quantum computing demand error rates lower by a billionfold or more. To move past the current era of noisy intermediate-scale quantum computing, scientists aim to compensate for high error rates by spreading quantum information across many redundant qubits. These quantum error correction strategies would help quantum computers detect and correct mistakes. In these schemes, a cluster of “physical” qubits altogether behave as one low-error “logical” qubit, serving as the foundation of a fault-tolerant quantum computer. Once a quantum error correction code is running, a quantum computer can then link qubits together to carry out elementary operations known as quantum gates. These come in two flavors — so-called “Clifford gates,” which classical computers can simulate, and “non-Clifford gates,” which they cannot.

Full report : Quantinuum Claims Key Step Towards Scaling Up Quantum Computers.

For more see the OODA Company Profile on Quantinuum.