IonQ Aria coming Exclusively to Microsoft Azure
The quantum system will be accessible exclusively via the Microsoft Azure Quantum platform
Hey Guys,
IonQ has done well for itself, with a market cap of IONQ 0.00%↑ of $1.32 Billion as of August 19th, 2022.
That IonQ Aria is “exclusively” on Microsoft Azure is a bit concerning to me. Quantum computing startup IonQ now has a second system available on Microsoft's Azure Quantum cloud platform, claiming it will open quantum systems to a wider audience.
Listen it was back in 2019, that they raised another $55 million in a round led by Samsung and Mubadala, and announced partnerships with Microsoft and Amazon Web Services to make their quantum computers available via the cloud. According to Crunchbase they have $432 million to date in funding.
IonQ Aria Exclusive to Microsoft Azure Quantum Platform
IonQ, founded in 2015 and based in College Park Maryland, generates quantum computers that are available through the cloud and direct API access.
Through Azure Quantum, users from around the world can access one of the industry’s most powerful quantum systems with a few simple keystrokes, paving the way for new quantum applications in areas like machine learning and logistics. IonQ Aria is the second IonQ system to join the Azure Quantum platform, following the rollout of IonQ Harmony in late 2019.
According to the Microsoft blog:
IonQ Aria boasts a record of 23 algorithmic qubits (#AQ),1 based on benchmarks measured by IonQ2. In IonQ tests, Aria successfully executed quantum circuits containing more than 550 gates, enabling testing of increasingly complex quantum algorithms.
The Aria system was first unveiled in February this year, but access until now was via a private beta program, with IonQ claiming it at the time as the "most powerful" in the industry, based on standard application-oriented benchmarks.
That they have gone with Microsoft Quantum Cloud is part of the “consolidation” I have been blogging about on this Newsletter, so the news isn’t’ exactly surprising. BigTech appears poised to acquire a lot of the best quantum computing startups, just as I predict Classiq, to be acquired by Microsoft one day.
I don’t really know what Peter Chapman is thinking. On October 1st, 2021, IonQ began trading as IONQ on the New York Stock Exchange, making it the world's first public pure-play quantum computing company. IONQ 0.00%↑ . To go SPAC really showed the kind of direction the company wanted to take, and only Rigetti and now D-Wave have joined them from the quantum computing startup first-mover cohort.
Aria is the latest IonQ system on the Azure Quantum platform, joining the IonQ Harmony system. IonQ’s dynamically reconfigurable systems, ranging from 11 to 23 fully connected qubits, enable you to run a two-qubit gate between any pair. Certainly Microsoft’s ecosystem could be lucrative for IonQ, though when startups make claims like they have, it’s not always a good sign.
As you know, Quantum computing describes computations that rely on the laws of quantum mechanics, including superposition, interference, and entanglement, in order to solve problems that are too complex for normal computers. The technology could become important for AI and especially its military, finance, pharma and materials applications, among others.
Aria appears to be a success so far: Some early unnamed customers have already begun using the system to develop algorithms that mitigate risk in finance, model chemical reactions within EV batteries, and improve image classification for future autonomous vehicles, the company said.
IonQ was founded in 2015 by Christopher Monroe and Jungsang Kim based on 25 years of pioneering research - IonQ was it claimed, the only company with its quantum systems available through the cloud on Amazon Braket, Microsoft Azure, and Google Cloud, as well as through direct API access. Now it seems Aria is exclusive to Microsoft.
“Having IonQ Aria be available to Azure Quantum customers is exciting, as it aligns with our original goal of making quantum accessible and affordable at scale,” said Peter Chapman, CEO and President, IonQ
It appears as if Microsoft has started its walled-garden for Quantum computing then for its Enterprise customers. Anyone with access to the Azure Quantum platform can process jobs on Aria; it takes only a few minutes to set up an Azure account and start programming on either or both IonQ Aria and Harmony.
The company only has revenue of 6.44 million thus far. I am uncomfortable with the some of the rhetoric in the PR. Speaking during IonQ's Q2 results call, where the company disclosed better-than-expected results for the quarter, Chapman claimed Aria was "a computer that is over 130,000 times more computationally powerful than our previous cloud offering".
“Azure Quantum helps customers learn, explore, and develop for quantum impact with an open, unified cloud ecosystem, and with the addition of IonQ’s Aria, offers even more capabilities and hardware diversity," said Dr. Krysta Svore, Distinguished Engineer, VP Quantum Software at Microsoft.
Microsoft’s hold on developers with its acquisition of GitHub has been a bit shocking. Now it will try to do the same with the future developers of quantum computing.
Microsoft of course presents this as incredible for innovation. “Our goal is to enable quantum algorithm innovation, and access to a diversity of quantum hardware for that innovation through Azure Quantum,” notes Dr. Krysta Svore, Azure Quantum Distinguished Engineer.
Even in the stock market correction of 2022, powerful entities like Apple, Microsoft, Google and Amazon have almost seemed immune to the higher interest rates and have boosted a NASAQ rally in July and the first half of August where the June bear market seems like a bad dream.
A Promising Quantum Startup
IonQ's quantum technology is based on trapped ions manipulated by laser beams, rather than the semiconductor-based, superconducting qubits used by many other quantum outfits.
IonQ is very far from mainstream adoption or anything serious, it has had a string of partnerships however. Earlier this quarter, IonQ announced a partnership with Hyundai Motor to design quantum algorithms to simulate battery chemistry in electric vehicles. IonQ has previously announced collaborations with GE Research to tackle risk mitigation and with Goldman Sachs on Monte Carlo simulations for financial applications like pricing options.
Aria is also available under a subscription model for monthly access. Just set up a free Azure account (check out free Azure accounts for students), create an Azure Quantum workspace in the Azure Portal, and start your quantum journey with Azure Quantum today.
Let’s think about this through in some more detail when it comes to the business reality.
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