October 29, 2024 -- ORCA Computing today announced the unveiling of the PT-2, the latest advancement in its PT Series of photonic quantum systems. Building on the success of the PT-1, which has deployed seven on-premises systems, the PT-2 represents a significant leap forward in practical quantum computing.

The PT-2 continues ORCA’s strategy to redefine quantum computing by offering a commercially viable solution, with seamless integration with high-performance computing (HPC) infrastructures. Its quantum-enhanced machine learning capabilities are integrated with the NVIDIA CUDA-Q development platform and can be combined with generative AI models, providing the nearest path to industrial scale quantum AI. This approach marks a radical departure from the limitations of other quantum approaches, empowering organizations to effectively embed quantum computing into generative AI and optimization workflows.

ORCA will be deploying a pioneering quantum computing testbed for the UK National Quantum Computing Centre (NQCC) that will include integrated GPU processing to explore a wide range of quantum approaches and use cases. This industry-first testbed accelerates the development and testing of photonic quantum architectures, focusing on machine learning with hybrid quantum/classical neural networks and photonic quantum processors.

“Generative AI is poised to transform economies and societies, but it’s approaching a point of unsustainability,” said Bob Sorensen, Senior Vice President of Research and Chief Analyst for Quantum Computing at Hyperion Research. “ORCA’s PT-2 offers a quantum-enhanced approach that addresses critical challenges like power consumption, model cost, and quality. By delivering a richer distribution for model training, the PT-2 helps overcome these hurdles.”

Organizations in industries such as manufacturing, energy, and pharmaceuticals are already leveraging ORCA’s cutting-edge photonic technology to solve complex computational problems. In chemical formulation, ORCA’s collaborators are generating new molecules using machine learning, while in vaccine development, the PT-2 is unlocking peptide design through quantum-enhanced generative AI, outperforming traditional methods.

“Harnessing the advanced technology of ORCA Computing and the robust capabilities of NVIDIA’s GPUs, we developed a hybrid quantum-classical infrastructure that demonstrates multi-QPU quantum-enhanced applications on the PT Series,” said Krzysztof Kurowski, from Poznan Supercomputing and Networking Center (PSNC). “We are excited about ORCA’s roadmap as we leverage two ORCA PT-1 systems to advance research in areas including biological imaging.”

“Our focus is on unlocking new applications while driving industry transformation,” said Richard Murray, Co-founder and CEO of ORCA Computing. “The PT-2 not only opens the door to future innovations but allows users to adopt quantum technology without major additional investments. Our roadmap ensures that customers can upgrade their systems and continuously benefit from the latest quantum  technologies.”