Qubit Community Weekly Newsletter #44
Dear Qubit Community,
Welcome to the latest edition of Qubit.IL’s weekly newsletter, where we explore cutting-edge quantum R&D developments from around the world. Whether you’re an industry veteran, a researcher at the lab bench, or simply quantum-curious, this roundup will keep you informed and inspired by the progress in quantum computing, communication, sensing, and more.
Best Regards,
The Qubit.IL Team
Top News — Technology & Research
1. Two 20-qubit computers simulate quantum “information scrambling” - RIKEN reports that two independent 20-qubit machines successfully simulated information scrambling—a hallmark of quantum chaos and a stress-test for near-term devices. The team reproduced out-of-time-ordered correlators (OTOCs) and compared dynamics across platforms, adding confidence that current hardware can emulate complex quantum behaviors with cross-verification. Beyond a headline result, the work offers a practical recipe for benchmarking multi-qubit dynamics and may evolve into a standard for validating claims of “quantum advantage” on medium-scale systems. For researchers and platform teams, that’s a serious tool for separating algorithmic progress from noise.
For further reading: https://phys.org/news/2025-08-quantum-qubits-simulate-scrambling.html
2. Caltech “stores qubits as sound” ~30× longer - Caltech engineers extended quantum memory lifetimes by converting fragile microwave excitations into long-lived phonons in nanomechanical resonators co-integrated with superconducting circuits. The hybrid electromechanical approach suppresses typical decoherence channels and, critically, slots into today’s circuit-QED stacks. Better memories mean deeper circuits and more robust error-mitigation; paired with bosonic encodings, the work nudges NISQ hardware toward more useful, longer algorithms without changing qubit counts. Caltech frames it as a platform concept—phononic “parking spots” for quantum states wherever coherence is precious.
For further reading: https://phys.org/news/2025-08-quantum-longer.html
3. Secure QKD without perfect single-photon sources - A Hebrew University–Los Alamos team demonstrated QKD protocols that tolerate real-world, imperfect emitters—quantum-dot sources paired with nanoantennas—while still beating laser-based decoy schemes. Their “truncated decoy” and “heralded purification” strategies extended secure distance by >3 dB and ran a reinforced BB84 at room temperature. The practical upshot: lower system costs, simpler optics, and an earlier on-ramp for metro-scale quantum-secure links. As Prof. Ronen Rapaport put it, you don’t need flawless hardware—“be smarter about how you use what you have.”
For further reading: https://phys.org/news/2025-08-imperfect-sources-benchmark-quantum-communication.html
Startups & Business
1. Quantinuum eyes a ~$10B valuation as Quanta invests $50M - Bloomberg-flagged fundraising talks would roughly double Quantinuum’s valuation vs. early 2024. In parallel, Taiwan’s Quanta Computer disclosed a $50M purchase of Series B preferred shares (~0.49% fully diluted), signaling growing strategic interest from classical compute giants. Together, the headlines point to an industry narrative shift: from exploratory pilots to positioning for platform leadership and ecosystem control. Watch for how proceeds align with error-correction, chemistry, and cybersecurity roadmaps.
For further reading: https://thequantuminsider.com/2025/08/22/quantinuum-eyes-10-billion-valuation-in-new-fundraising-talks/
2. IBM Ventures: quantum now “on equal footing” with AI - IBM’s venture arm is treating quantum as co-strategic with AI—targeting startups that complement its hardware roadmap (e.g., Qedma, QunaSys, Strangeworks) and leaning on university partnerships to accelerate commercialization. The stance matters for founders: expect tighter coupling to IBM’s stack and more POCs with Fortune-class clients in chemistry, materials, logistics, and finance. It’s also a leading indicator that corporate VC will keep underwriting the quantum software layer while hardware scales.
For further reading: https://globalventuring.com/corporate/information-technology/emily-fontaine-ibm-ventures-quantum/