IBM announced Dec. 14 the first clients who will tap into its IBM-Q early access computing systems. Those selected will explore the practical applications of quantum computing systems in business and science fields. They include: JPMorgan Chase, Daimler AG, Samsung, JSR Corp., Barclays, Hitachi Metals, Honda, Nagase, Keio University, Oak Ridge National Lab, Oxford University and University of Melborne.
The IBM Q Network provides organizations with quantum expertise and resources and cloud-based access to the most advanced and scalable universal quantum computing systems.
“IBM sees the next few years as the dawn of the commercial quantum era – a formative period when quantum computing technology and its early use cases develop rapidly,” Dario Gil, vice president of AI and IBM Q, IBM Research, said in a statement. “The IBM Q Network will serve as a vehicle to make quantum computing more accessible to businesses and organizations through access to the most advanced IBM Q systems and quantum ecosystem.”
In addition to the exploration of application, IBM Q Network will establish global hubs for quantum research in the U.S, U.K., Australia and Japan. These hubs will enable industry and research collaborators to have online use of IBM Q systems and engage in joint development.
“Providing access to real quantum computing hardware is fundamental to accelerating the development of applications and programs important to UT-Battelle, LLC., the managing and operating contractor at the Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL),” said Jeff Nichols, associate laboratory director, Oak Ridge National Laboratory. “Establishing ORNL as a hub of the IBM Q Network would again demonstrate that UT-Battelle is at the forefront of innovation, enabled by the world’s most advanced computational systems, and will continue to drive transformational advancements in science and research.”
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