'A very big deal': Sydney-based Diraq edges closer to 2028 quantum computing goal after key contract win
The Sydney deep tech startup has struck a deal with GlobalFoundries, which makes semiconductors for the likes of Qualcomm, to make a batch of its quantum-powered chips.
The founder of Sydney deep tech startup Diraq has staked his claim to be among the leaders in the global race to develop a commercially viable quantum computer after the company secured a significant contract win with a key supplier to US chipmaker Qualcomm.
New York-based, Nasdaq listed GlobalFoundries, which has been described as the world's third largest semiconductor foundry, last week announced it will soon begin producing a batch of chips designed by Diraq. Diraq founder and CEO Andrew Dzurak said the goal is to test that its qubits – the atomic bits quantum computers are designed to process – can interface as planned with traditional silicon circuitry.
“This will be the first of many chip runs we will be doing over the coming years,” said Dzurak. “By 2028 I'm comfortable saying that we're looking at [creating a quantum computer with] many thousands of interacting quantum bits, performing calculations… that can't be performed today on any supercomputer."
The announcement was accompanied by the news that Diraq worked with Imec, a Belgium-based R&D lab, to develop the process by which its chips can be commercially manufactured. Imec manufactured a qubit-embedded silicon chip in one of its foundries using the design, a proof of concept that Diraq looks to reproduce with GlobalFoundries.
