Entangled Things

In Episode 141, Mike Piech, Vice President of Business Development at Rigetti Computing, joins Patrick and Ciprian to talk hardware. Rigetti recently announced their 108-qubit system and is targeting 99.5% two-qubit gate fidelity by end of year, with a thousand physical qubits in sight by 2029. Mike breaks down why superconducting qubits are built on decades of semiconductor manufacturing know-how, what the Josephson junction actually does and why non-linearity is the key to isolating a usable qubit state, and why a macroscopic circuit behaving quantumly is one of the more remarkable phenomena in modern physics. The conversation also covers Rigetti's international work — including a 36-qubit system at the UK National Quantum Computing Centre and a new 108-qubit deployment in India with CDAC. The time to start learning quantum is now.

In Episode 140, Patrick and Ciprian are joined by Yoon Auh, founder of NUTS Technologies & BOLTS Technologies. The team discuss the unique approach to cryptography designed to future-proof data against quantum threats. Discover how his protocols enable dynamic encryption, adapting to evolving security needs. This conversation highlights the urgency of innovation and the strategic role of adaptable cryptography in today's rapidly changing landscape.

In Episode 139, Patrick and Ciprian are joined by Bert de Jong, senior scientist at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. The team discusses quantum computing's role in material science and energy, exploring industry challenges and strategic partnerships. The conversation emphasizes innovation urgency and national labs' influence on the future.
Bert de Jong is the Director of the Quantum Systems Accelerator, which is part of the National Quantum Initiative. In addition, de Jong is the Team Director of the Accelerated Research for Quantum Computing (ARQC) Team MACH-Q, funded by DOE ASCR, focused on developing software stacks for near-term quantum computing devices. In addition, de Jong has a program in AI and machine learning to understand biomolecular processes, and discover new materials and molecular crystals for gas adsorption. de Jong serves as the Department Head for Computational Sciences, and leads the Applied Computing for Scientific Discovery Group, which advances scientific computing by developing and enhancing applications in key disciplines, as well as developing HPC, quantum and AI tools and libraries for addressing general problems in computational science.

In Episode 138, Patrick and Ciprian explore how MIT’s new photonic chip approach promises to pave the way for more scalable, energy-efficient trapped ion quantum computers. The team discuss why controlling ions with integrated photonics could dramatically lower costs, boost qubit stability, and solve long-standing scalability hurdles. They also break down how these tiny antennas routing light directly to the trapped ions remove the need for bulky external lasers, opening the door to compact, room-temperature quantum systems, potentially revolutionizing everything from nanotech to medicine.

In Episode 137, Scott Genin, Vice President of Materials Discovery at OTI Lumionics, unveils how GPU-accelerated quantum chemistry is revolutionizing material science. The discussion highlights the limitations of current quantum hardware and the role of AI in overcoming these challenges. Scott shares insights into how classical simulations can mimic quantum computers, pushing the boundaries of what's possible. He emphasizes the significance of these advancements for real-world applications, from OLEDs to new catalysts. This episode is essential for anyone interested in the future of quantum computing and material discovery. See more about the announcement here: https://arxiv.org/abs/2603.08883