What Does Enterprise-Ready Quantum Computing Look Like?

With AI rapidly transforming industries, enterprise leaders are alert to other emerging technologies that could have a similar impact. Quantum computing is one example of such a technology. It represents the next frontier in advanced computing and promises breakthroughs in processing power for complex problems. However, enterprise access to quantum computing has traditionally been limited by extremely high hardware costs and a steep learning curve.

Until recently, universities and research labs owned and hosted most quantum computers for research. But that’s beginning to change. Quantum computing has matured, and businesses are now using it to support various use cases across industries. They’re doing so with the help of Quantum Computing as a Service (QCaaS) offerings from cloud providers and other technology providers who are assisting quantum compute providers in building out HPC architectures to scale quantum commercially. These services give businesses access to quantum computers and enterprise-ready solution components, just as they access other technology services today.

As part of this shift to an as a Service model, quantum computing companies are also discovering the advantages of hosting their hardware in highly interconnected colocation data centers instead of closed lab or service provider environments. This will help make QCaaS even more accessible to enterprises while opening options for co-innovating and scaling with partners for full-stack offerings.

Quantum or classical computers, or both?

Quantum computing could be transformative for enterprises. But it will not be the compute of choice for every application. Classical computers will still play an important role and will even work alongside quantum computers to support certain applications.

Standalone quantum computing

Quantum computing can quickly solve certain kinds of problems that would be essentially impossible for classical computers to solve. For instance, quantum is very efficient at solving complex problems such as large-scale chemistry and physics simulations. Whether it’s an automotive company designing a next-gen battery or a material science company developing a fertilizer, quantum computing will accelerate discovery and innovation in many different industries. Other examples include:

Life sciences: Quantum computers will be used in drug design to simulate complex molecular interactions and predict drug efficacy and side effects; in biological data analysis to identify patterns and generate insights that enhance diagnostics and treatment strategies; and in protein folding to predict its behavior and understand cellular functions, and to develop new therapeutic agents.

Financial services: Quantum computing will be used to create more resilient, higher-performing portfolios, improve the accuracy and speed of fraud detection, conduct more accurate risk management simulations, and develop more sophisticated, predictive algorithmic trading strategies.

Logistics and supply chain: Quantum algorithms will be used to find the most efficient delivery and shipping routes, predict demand for inventory management, and model potential supply chain disruptions to maintain operational continuity.

Manufacturing and materials science: Quantum will be used to simulate and design new materials that meet sector-specific requirements, optimize complex manufacturing processes, and develop quantum-enhanced sensors and analysis tools for improved quality control and defect detection.

AI: Classical HPC clusters will still be the primary compute used for AI, but companies are starting to integrate quantum computing into traditional compute stacks to run simulations that require quantum computation, decreasing GPU spend and reducing energy consumption.

Hybrid quantum computing

There are also scenarios in which quantum and classical AI will work together to solve business challenges. Quantum processors will focus on solving specific, computationally intensive problems, while classical computers handle most of the data processing and management.

Take drug discovery as an example. Classical AI needs to identify the best drug candidate for treating a specific condition. Instead of relying on chemists to perform manual analysis, the AI systems will connect with quantum resources to analyze a particular drug molecule, then work interactively to solve that challenge. It’s about leveraging the best of both worlds in a unified way. This type of collaborative problem-solving could apply to other industries and use cases as well, including automotive manufacturing, financial services, sustainability, cybersecurity and chemical engineering.

There are initiatives in development that will bridge the world of classical computing GPUs with quantum computers, enabling businesses to design programs and workflows in a seamless environment. That means quantum computers will need to be in proximity to classical computers in high-performance data centers or securely connected virtually to ensure low latency and data privacy.

Establish secure connectivity to a global quantum compute ecosystem

As organizations explore quantum computing for real-world use cases, they require secure, reliable connectivity that ensures data is stored within corporate networks and inside the region where it was generated. Security isn’t the only consideration. Some quantum use cases generate petabytes of data per hour, and moving all that data requires fast, reliable network connectivity to and from enterprise IT infrastructure. Cost can also be a barrier to getting started with quantum computing when enterprises attempt to acquire hardware and staff the necessary resources themselves.

To address these concerns, Quantum Computing as a Service (QCaaS) providers are hosting their hardware and solutions in Equinix IBX® colocation data centers. Enterprises can leverage Equinix Fabric® software-defined connectivity for scalable, private virtual connectivity and Equinix Network Edge for security and compliance functions, allowing them to experiment with quantum computing in a predictable and scalable way. Further, they can use these digital services to easily connect from their primary IBX colocation data center to quantum computers or solutions hosted in other IBX data centers, and reach cloud and neoclouds via private on-ramps.

Accessing QCaaS solutions at Equinix makes quantum technology easier to use in real-world scenarios, thus moving beyond lab environments to stable commercial deployments. It also enables enterprises to securely integrate quantum capabilities with their existing IT infrastructure and test proofs of concept before launching into full production.

In addition to QCaaS providers, Equinix customers can access a dense ecosystem that includes quantum solution providers, clouds, network services and industry partners, to build full-stack quantum architectures. Quantum providers can also leverage the ecosystem to build enterprise-ready architectures, enabling them to scale for commercial quantum. The list of quantum providers with deployments at Equinix is continuously growing. It currently includes Alice & Bob, Oxford Quantum Circuits (OQC) and Quantinuum.

View the latest video in our Interconnected series, where Equinix hosts, Glenn Dekhayser, Global Principal Technologist and Petrina Steele, Vice President, Market Development, talk with three industry experts about how quickly quantum computing is becoming enterprise-ready.

To learn more about how enterprises can deploy powerful compute hardware efficiently, check out our white paper: The engine of AI powering innovation at scale: High-performance data centers.