Integrating quantum computing into practical applications presents a persistent challenge due to the fundamental architectural differences. BlueQubit, a San Francisco-based quantum software startup founded by Stanford alumni, believes it has found a solution. Its Quantum Software as a Service (QSaaS) platform aims to address this issue by offering end-users access to 'Quantum Processing Units' (QPUs) and quantum computing emulators.
Seed Funding and Mission
In a significant move, BlueQubit has raised $10 million in a Seed funding round led by Nyca Partners. The goal is to merge enterprise applications with advanced quantum hardware. Sectors such as finance, pharmaceuticals, and material science are reaching the limits of what classical computing can achieve, which is why quantum computing is gaining so much attention.Quantum's Promise
Quantum computing holds the potential to unlock new solutions to numerous intractable problems. Google's recent announcement of Willow, its latest quantum computing chip, gave a glimpse into a future where computers could complete a computation in under five minutes that would take one of today's fastest supercomputers 10 septillion years. This showcases the immense power of quantum computing.Use Cases and Team
BlueQubit's QSaaS framework supports various use cases like financial modeling, pharmaceutical development, and visualization. Hrant Ghairbyan, the CEO and Co-Founder of BlueQubit, told TechCrunch that the company utilizes large-scale classical computing resources, specifically a fleet of GPUs, to develop and test quantum algorithms before deploying them on real quantum processors. This approach allows for effective scaling and the pioneering of novel algorithms for quantum machine learning and optimization.MIT graduate Gharibyan co-authored a groundbreaking 'wormhole teleportation' algorithm that was later implemented by the Google Quantum AI team on their superconducting processor. BlueQubit's CTO, Hayk Tepanyan, graduated from Stanford University and later worked on Google's infrastructure team. The two met at Stanford."We decided to start the company while sitting on surfboards in Santa Monica, CA, in the spring of 2022," said Gharibyan. "We had just heard about the IBM Quantum team's progress on superconducting qubits, and it was evident that the quantum landscape was advancing rapidly.""We have been seeking a team to invest in that is committed to enabling financial services firms to be ready once quantum computing becomes a reality," said Tom Brown, Partner at Nyca, in a statement. "Hrant and Hayk have the right background, skills, and drive to make something that was mostly theoretical a reality."Also participating in this round were Restive, Chaac Ventures, NKM Capital, Presto Tech Horizons, BigStory, Untapped Ventures, Formula VC, and Granatus.
