Quantum News Nexus

Xanadu Quantum Technologies, the Toronto outfit that very likely and very soon will be the next quantum computing company to go public, announced that it has worked with partner and Xanadu investor AMD to successfully demonstrate computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations for aerospace applications running in a hybrid quantum-classical computing environment.

The announcement comes as Xanadu is on track to complete a merger with special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) Crane Harbor Acquisition Corp. that will allow it to make its public stock debut by the end of this quarter (sometime in the next three weeks if you don’t have a calendar in front of you). Xanadu last week said its joint registration statement for the deal had earned the “SEC declaration of effectiveness,” one of the final steps before its transaction can be closed. The deal, announced last fall, carries a total value of more than $3 billion, and its expected provide Xanadu with $455 million in cash on its balance sheet, according to comments made by Crane Harbor CEO Bill Fradin during Xanadu’s Analyst Day presentation last week.

AMD was one of the participants in the $275 million PIPE financing round that Xanadu raised to help support its merger and public market ambitions. The semiconductor giant earned a brief mention during the Analyst Day event, but the companies have not said much about how they are working together at a technology level until now.

Their collaboration combined Xanadu’s PennyLane quantum software, a programming environment used by many companies and developers since it was announced about eight years ago, with AMD high-performance classical computing solutions on the AMD DevCloud, according to a Xanadu press release.

In aerospace engineering, computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations are key to optimizing design of aircraft and enhancing aircraft efficiency. “The work centered on the compilation and execution of a CFD model with 256×256 matrix elements,” the Xanadu statement said. “This hybrid program utilized 20 qubits and approximately 35 million quantum gates, pushing the boundaries of current CFD quantum simulations.”

The companies added that their team-up “also improved the performance of a core quantum algorithm, the Quantum Singular Value Transformation (QSVT), which is a key driver for a variety of applications, including those relevant to aerospace engineering.” The statement went on, “Xanadu found that by moving from a traditional CPU to a single AMD GPU, the team reduced simulation time by 25 times, demonstrating the immediate value of high-performance computing in accelerating quantum workflows. Using PennyLane’s Catalyst compiler, they also translated a 68-qubit quantum circuit into more than 15 million hardware-optimized gates, preparing it for future fault-tolerant quantum systems.”

Madhu Rangarajan, Corporate Vice President, Compute and Enterprise AI, AMD, observed, “Seeing AMD high-performance compute boost the performance of PennyLane is a clear proof point of how quantum and classical technologies can effectively work together. This work further underscores the importance of seamless integration between classical and quantum computing. The work between AMD and Xanadu expands the boundaries of what is possible for users investigating hybrid quantum/classical computing using AMD compute today.”

For AMD, the demonstration represents the latest move by the traditional semiconductor firm into the quantum realm after it initially was seen as lagging competitor Nvidia’s moves in the sector. In recent months, AMD also has invested in Classiq, and announced a quantum-classical partnership with IBM.

Xanadu Founder and CEO Christian Weedbrook added, “Accelerating quantum applications for the aerospace industry requires close collaboration between quantum software and high-performance computing. Our partnership with AMD brings these capabilities together to address real engineering challenges today. By optimizing how large-scale quantum programs are compiled and simulated, we are helping ensure the aerospace industry is ready to adopt fault-tolerant quantum computing as soon as it becomes available.”

In addition to PennyLane, Xanadu continues to work on a photonic quantum computing system called Aurora. In addition to AMD, Xanadu also has announced collaborations with companies such as Lockheed Martin, Rolls Royce, Tower Semiconductor, and Mitsubishi, among others. The company was founded by Weedbrook in 2016.

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Quantum News Nexus is a site from freelance writer and editor Dan O’Shea that covers quantum computing, quantum sensing, quantum networking, quantum-safe security, and more. You can find him on X @QuantumNewsGuy and doshea14@gmail.com.