29 May, 2024 -- Riverlane, the global leader in quantum error correction technology, and Alice & Bob, a leading developer of fault-tolerant quantum computers, have signed a collaboration agreement to work on the integration of Riverlane’s quantum error correction (QEC) stack within the larger quantum computing system based on cat qubit technology Alice & Bob is developing.

Qubits, the core building blocks of quantum computers, are inherently prone to errors. Two errors disrupt the quantum information in the qubit, bit-flips and phase-flips. Alice & Bob has pioneered the cat qubit, a unique type of superconducting qubit that is protected from bit-flips by design, reducing the scale of the error correction challenge. This would allow the company to build a large-scale error-corrected quantum computer using 200 times fewer hardware resources than other state-of-the-art approaches.

All quantum computers today, regardless of qubit type, require error correction technology that addresses both bit and phase flip errors in real time. Today’s best quantum computers perform thousands of reliable quantum operations. This must scale to a million and, ultimately, trillions of operations to execute those applications that will transform whole industries. Riverlane’s patented quantum error correction stack, Deltaflow, comprehensively addresses this challenge as a distinct layer within a quantum computer’s overall stack. Deltaflow employs the world’s most powerful quantum error decoder.

“Our cat qubits are protected from one of the two errors in quantum computers. But this only solves part of the challenge.” said Dr. Théau Peronnin, Alice & Bob CEO. “We need quantum error correction to get rid of the remaining error, the phase-flip. We are partnering with Riverlane because they have the most promising QEC technology for this challenge.”

The two companies recently announced their collaboration on stage at the France Quantum conference in Paris. They underlined the importance of solving the all-important challenge of error correction as a prerequisite for quantum computing to deliver on its multi-trillion-dollar promise.

Riverlane’s Founder and CEO Dr. Steve Brierley said: “We’re excited to begin exploring how best to combine Alice & Bob’s cat qubits, which are already one of the most resistant to errors, with our leading quantum error correction technology, to accelerate our shared path to fault-tolerant quantum computing. I’m certain this approach can help them scale further and faster.”