Nvidia builds quantum-classical computing system with Israel’s Quantum Machines
Israel’s quantum computing R&D center, headed by the startup, will be the first to deploy the new DGX Quantum to help researchers and developers write hybrid algorithms
Sharon Wrobel is a tech reporter for The Times of Israel.
US gaming and computer graphics giant Nvidia has joined forces with an Israeli startup to roll out a new hardware system to connect the quantum computer with classical computers.
The new system, Nvidia DGX Quantum, built together with Israel’s Quantum Machines, a developer of a standard universal language for quantum computers, is expected to be first deployed at Israel’s quantum computing research center at the end of this year.
The quantum computing R&D center funded by the Israel Innovation Authority at an investment of NIS 100 million ($27 million), which is headed by Quantum Machines, was established to help Israel build a quantum computer and advance research in the field that would lead to future developments in economics, technology, security, engineering, and science.
Quantum computing harnesses quantum mechanics to quickly solve problems that are too complex for classical computers. Quantum computers process exponentially more data compared to classical computers, using quantum bits, or qubits, the basic unit of quantum information.
Founded in 2018 by award-winning quantum electronics experts Dr. Itamar Sivan, Dr. Yonatan Cohen and Dr. Nissim Ofek, Quantum Machines built the Quantum Orchestration Platform (QOP), a hardware and software solution for operating quantum systems to facilitate research and enable future breakthroughs. It also developed the QUA, a standard universal language for quantum computers that the startup says allows researchers and scientists to write programs for varied quantum computers with one unified code.
The DGX Quantum deploys Nvidia’s Grace Hopper superchip and its technology platform for hybrid quantum-classical computers coupling so-called graphics processing units (GPUs) and quantum processing units (QPUs) in one system. It is supported by Quantum Machine’s flagship OPX universal quantum control system designed to meet the demanding requirements of quantum control protocols, including precision, timing, complexity, and ultra-low latency, according to the Israeli startup.
The combination allows “researchers to build extraordinarily powerful applications that combine quantum computing with state-of-the-art classical computing, enabling calibration, control, quantum error correction and hybrid algorithms,” Nvidia said in a statement.
Tech giants like Google, Microsoft, IBM, and Intel are all racing to make quantum computing more accessible and build additional systems, while countries like China, the US, Germany, India, and Japan are also pouring millions into developing their own quantum abilities.
“We are heading toward a new age of quantum computing that is more accessible to more researchers than ever,” said Sivan, CEO of Quantum Machines. “Our collaboration with NVIDIA on the DGX Quantum system will enable a new generation of innovators to solve some of the world’s greatest challenges.”
Israel’s quantum computing center is part of the NIS 1.25 billion ($342 million) Israel National Quantum Initiative, launched in 2018 to facilitate relevant quantum research, develop human capital in the field, encourage industrial projects, and invite international cooperation on R&D. The center will offer access to research and development on three quantum processing technologies — superconducting qubits, cold ions, and optic computers — and provide services to the Israeli quantum computing community.
“Quantum-accelerated supercomputing has the potential to reshape science and industry with capabilities that can serve humanity in enormous ways,” said Nvidia’s quantum director Tim Costa. “DGX Quantum will enable researchers to push the boundaries of quantum-classical computing.”
Nvidia’s partnership with Quantum Machines adds to the US chipmaker’s activities in Israel in recent years. Nvidia’s R&D operations in Israel are already the firm’s largest outside of the US. Last year, it established a new design and engineering group in Israel that is leading the development of next-generation central processing units (CPUs) geared toward artificial intelligence, robotics, autonomous vehicles, and Nvidia’s new platform Omniverse, which allows for virtual world simulations.
Back in 2020, Nvidia acquired Israel’s Mellanox Technologies Ltd., a maker of high-speed servers and storage switching solutions used in supercomputers globally, for a massive $7 billion.
