World’s First Quantum Computer Built with Silicon Chips Launched in the UK
A British startup has disrupted the world quantum computing race by launching the first-ever full-stack quantum computer built with silicon chips. The system, which is already live at the UK National Quantum Computing Centre, is a major achievement for the country’s tech sector.
Quantum Motion, the London-based company behind this feat, used the same chip tech found in everyday smartphones and laptops. Instead of exotic materials, the team went for the standard complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor fabrication process that powers conventional computers.
At the heart of the design are cryoelectronics that link qubits with control circuits at extremely low temperatures. This allows quantum processors to be scaled in ways that were previously impossible.
“This is quantum computing’s silicon moment,” said James Palles-Dimmock, CEO of Quantum Motion. “Today’s announcement shows you can build a strong and functional quantum computer with the world’s most scalable technology, which can be mass-produced.”
The machine combines a Quantum Processing Unit with a control stack and a user interface compatible with tools like Qiskit and Cirq. It’s a full-stack solution packaged into three standard server racks that fit into a data centre.
Michael Cuthbert, director of the National Quantum Computing Centre, described the installation as a significant development for the UK. “The NQCC team is really excited to start testing and validation of the system and see how real-world applications will map onto its silicon architecture,” he said.
Quantum Motion relied on large-scale industrial chipmaking processes while overlooking exotic materials to construct qubits. The company’s tile-based design puts compute, readout and control into a dense and repeatable array, so you can scale to millions of qubits per chip without changing the physical footprint.
“With the delivery of this system, Quantum Motion is on track to bring commercially useful quantum computers to market this decade,” said Hugo Saleh, president of Quantum Motion.
This silicon-based approach could bring fault-tolerant and commercially viable quantum computing closer than ever.