One of the largest European cloud computing companies, OVHcloud, has made its first foray into the world of on-demand quantum computing. The company’s Quantum Platform will be available as-a-service, joining similar QaaS offerings from IBM, Amazon (IonQ and Rigetti) and Microsoft Azure.
The company says Quantum Platform will provide access to “at least eight” quantum computers, including the Pasqal Orion Beta, the first to be available at the time of writing. “This launch gives us the means to offer our customers the most advanced technologies […] We want to provide our customers with the means to iterate, test and learn, so that we can all be ready to embrace quantum together,” said Fanny Bouton, Quantum Lead at OVHcloud.
The Pasqal Orion platform offers 100-qubits of processing and is based on the so-called neutral atom method of quantum entanglement. Different methods of producing quantum states at atomic levels include photonic quantum systems such as the UK’s ORCA at the National Quantum Computing Centre, trapped ion, superconducting, and silicon quantum.
OVHcloud is positioning itself at the centre of European efforts to advance quantum computing’s availability, work which began in 2022 when it launched its first quantum emulator. To date, there are nearly a thousand users of quantum computing accessing the technology via the OVHcloud portal. Users can try out quantum modelling emulations, and progress to actual quantum computing when ready. After Pasqal, OVHcloud plans to integrate eight other QPUs (quantum processing units) by the end of 2027, of which seven will be of European origin.
The quantum services from hyperscalers each offer a range of quantum methods and engines, and OVHcloud is following the same model, with multiple options offered via the same platform. Users buy processing time on emulators to test their algorithms, then run live workloads for which the fees are higher.
Hailing the service as emblematic of European digital sovereignty, Pasqal’s CEO, Loïc Henriet said the availability of the quantum machine “ensures that quantum computing, from hardware to cloud infrastructure, can be developed, deployed, and operated entirely within Europe. This collaboration embodies our shared commitment to building an European trusted, independent, and competitive quantum ecosystem.”
Quantum computing is finding early adopters in industries like finance, pharmaceuticals, and logistics. Like many emerging technologies, quantum computing was developed in academic research labs and is only just beginning to find real-world niche use cases. Seen as the next frontier in technology, the OVHcloud move aims to prevent a repeat of the mainstreaming of cloud and AI technologies, which are dominated by US and Chinese companies.
(Image source: “Entangled” by Forsaken Fotos is licensed under CC BY 2.0.)
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