IBM unveiled the first IBM Quantum Data Center located outside of the United States. It is the company's second quantum data center in the world and marks a significant expansion of its fleet of advanced, utility-scale quantum systems available to global users via the cloud.
Located in Ehningen, Germany, Europe's first IBM Quantum Data Center includes two new utility-scale, Quantum Eagle-based systems, and will soon feature a new Quantum Heron-based system. These systems are capable of performing computations beyond the brute-force simulation capabilities of classical computers.
First introduced late last year, Heron is IBM's most performant quantum chip yet and advances the company's mission of bringing useful quantum computing to the world by enabling users to increase the complexity of algorithms they are exploring on real quantum hardware. When the Heron-based system is made available at the IBM Quantum Data Center in Europe, it will be the third Heron installed across IBM's fleet of quantum systems that can be accessed by the company's global quantum network of more than 250 enterprises, universities, research institutions, and organizations.
Heron offers up to a 16-fold increase in performance and a 25-fold increase in speed over previous IBM quantum computers as they were measured two years ago. When it is deployed alongside the now-available utility-scale systems, the Heron-based system will expand the more than a dozen quantum computers IBM currently offers through the cloud – the largest fleet of its kind in the world.
The opening of the new quantum data center was celebrated at a ribbon-cutting event attended by senior government officials, including German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and Nicole Hoffmeister-Kraut, Minister for Economic Affairs, Labour, and Tourism, State of Baden-Württemberg. IBM CEO and Chairman Arvind Krishna gave remarks alongside Chancellor Scholz. The Chancellor also spoke at length with IBM leaders including Dario Gil, IBM Senior Vice President and Director of Research, Ana Paula Assis, General Manager of IBM EMEA, Jay Gambetta, Vice President of IBM Quantum, and IBM Quantum's German-based team about the importance of quantum computing's adoption and growth in the region.
Additionally, the landmark moment was attended by several senior leaders of European-based global enterprises, including Crédit Mutuel, Bosch, E.ON, Volkswagen, and others, as well as research institutions such as Ikerbasque in Spain and Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft. These organizations are among the more than 80 European-based organizations within the IBM Quantum Network, many of which have the opportunity to access the systems within the IBM Quantum Data Center in Europe to search for the algorithms and applications of quantum computing that could solve some of the most complex challenges across their industries.
"The opening of the IBM Quantum Data Center in Ehningen is good news for Germany. It will serve as a location for innovation and business growth and is an expression of investors' confidence in the German market. IBM enriches the German quantum computing landscape with this new data center. The German government is providing targeted support for the development of quantum technologies. It is thereby driving forward the development of competencies and capacities in quantum computing in order to promote a robust ecosystem around the development of quantum computers," said Olaf Scholz, Chancellor of the Federal Republic of Germany.
"The opening of our first IBM Quantum Data Center in Europe marks a pivotal moment for the region's technological development, demonstrates our commitment to Europe, and underscores the key role of collaboration with industry, academia, and policymakers for a pan-European quantum ecosystem. This state-of-the-art facility will foster innovation around quantum computing, creating new opportunities for talent attraction and ensuring that Europe remains at the forefront of global technological advancements," said Ana Paula Assis, General Manager and Chairman of IBM Europe, Middle East and Africa.
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