July 8, 2024 -- planqc, the European leader in digital atom-based quantum computing, proudly announces the securement of €50 million financing. This substantial Series A investment is led by the European Family Office CATRON Holding and the DeepTech & Climate Fonds (DTCF). Additional financial support is provided by Bayern Kapital, the Max-Planck Foundation, further private investors, existing investors UVC and Speedinvest and it includes a non-dilutive grant from Germany’s Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF).

Alexander Glätzle, CEO and co-founder of planqc, stated, “This latest investment round is a strong endorsement of our technology as a leading platform for quantum applications. The substantial backing places us in a perfect position to take on global competitors with our ‘Made in Germany’ quantum computers, targeting an emerging market valued at billions of euros.”

planqc’s unique technology, built on award-winning research at the Max-Planck-Institute for Quantum Optics (MPQ), aims for rapid advancement in the development of industry-relevant quantum computers. The new financing will be utilized to establish a quantum computing cloud service and to develop quantum software for applications in industries such as chemistry, healthcare, climate-tech, automotive, and finance. Today, planqc is already using quantum machine learning to work on climate simulations or more efficient batteries for electric vehicles.

Dr. Sebastian Blatt, CTO of planqc, explained the core of planqc’s technology: “Unlike most other companies, including Big Tech, we use individual atoms – confined in crystals of light – as qubits. This approach is the fast track to scaling the number of qubits and improving their quality, the prerequisites for being the first to deliver fault-tolerant quantum computers.”

Founded in 2022 by scientists from MPQ and Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich (LMU), planqc is located at the heart of Munich’s Quantum Valley (MQV). Recently, the company has been commissioned to deploy a 1,000-qubit quantum computer at the Leibniz Supercomputing Centre—one of the nation’s premier supercomputing facilities — by the German Government. Moreover, planqc has secured a European tender to develop a quantum computer for the German Aerospace Center (DLR).

Prof. Immanuel Bloch, director at MPQ, added, “At MPQ, we have a strong tradition of supporting spin-offs from our institute and translating fundamental science to industry. planqc is the latest example and is based on our expertise in trapping, cooling and manipulating cold atoms and molecules. In the future, we look forward to extending this collaboration.”

The MPQ in collaboration with planqc already showcased the scaling of the number of neutral atoms utilized as qubits to 1,200. Reaching this industry milestone in qubit numbers paves the way for fault-tolerant – and therefore practical useful - quantum computers. Further scaling to 10.000 or even 100.000 qubits is expected in the next couple of years. These systems will then be capable of tackling previously unsolvable problems.