When it comes to developments such as artificial intelligence, American technology companies dominate almost unassailably. The situation is different with quantum computers. Several German companies are at the forefront here. However, the location has a crucial disadvantage.
The next technical revolution is quite inconspicuous: a black box the size of a refrigerator that hangs from a socket. However, inside it is a quantum computer equipped with diamond chips from the Leipzig startup SaxonQ, which in a few years could eclipse traditional high-performance computers in terms of speed. “We show that the technology will soon bring a decisive advantage in energy supply, medical research, artificial intelligence (AI) and many other industries,” says SaxonQ co-managing director Frank Schlichting.
According to experts, quantum computers could change the world more fundamentally than AI because they complete certain tasks many times faster than previous supercomputers. Unlike other technologies, Germany and Europe are not left behind here, emphasizes Leon Koch, co-founder and boss of the Munich company Peak Quantum. "That's why it's important now to stay on the ball." To support this, the federal government launched the Quantum Computing Competition (QCC) developer competition. Companies and research institutions are applying for a total of 640 million euros in funding. They are expected to develop at least two industrially usable quantum computers at the highest level by 2030.
However, the technology is still in its infancy. It is also unclear which of the various approaches will prevail. While SaxonQ relies on diamond chips, other developers rely on superconducting processors. These are cooled down to around minus 273 degrees Celsius so that electricity can flow without resistance. Another group manipulates electrically charged atoms in an “ion trap” using lasers or microwaves to create so-called qubits.
These form the smallest computing unit of a quantum computer. Unlike bits in conventional computers, qubits not only assume the states zero or one, but theoretically an infinite number of intermediate states. This means that several calculation steps can be processed at the same time. The systems also require significantly less power than a conventional server. Depending on the technical approach, a household socket can already provide sufficient energy. However, quantum computers are not equally suitable for all tasks. Their strengths come into play, among other things, in the encryption and decryption of data, the calculation of optimal routes for shipping companies or certain AI applications. Therefore, quantum computers and traditional high-performance computers will probably share space in data centers in the future.
However, quantum computers are extremely sensitive to external influences. The cost of error correction therefore increases exponentially with each additional qubit. Complex algorithms exacerbate the problem. “Disturbances are, so to speak, the final enemy of quantum computing,” explains Jens Eisert, professor at the Dahlem Center for Complex Quantum Systems at the Free University of Berlin.
Therefore, the high qubit numbers that companies like Google and IBM boast are only of limited significance. Because a large proportion of them are needed for error correction, only a handful of error-corrected, "logical" qubits remain for the actual calculations, too few for commercial use. A three-digit number of logical qubits is the minimum for this.
Some researchers are trying to improve error correction using AI. Peak Quantum, which emerged from a research group at the Walter Meissner Institute, relies on specially processed materials and modified chip design to reduce the susceptibility to errors. “The race for quantum computers is open,” emphasizes Jan Leisse, co-founder and CEO of the startup EleQtron. "There are many players in the game, but no one has made a big breakthrough yet." The Siegen-based company relies on commercially available components from the electronics industry to construct its ion trap quantum computers. This should make series production easier.
In this technological competition, the USA, China and Europe were neck and neck, says Alexander Glätzle, co-founder and boss of PlanQC. The quantum computers of this company, a spin-off of the Max Planck Institute for Quantum Optics, also work at room temperature. "We have a good chance of remaining among the world's best - thanks to leading research institutes, a high density of talent in the field of quantum technology and targeted public funding programs." In addition, there are a large number of highly specialized supplier companies in Europe.
However, one hurdle on the way from a promising prototype to a market-ready quantum computer "Made in Europe" is the lack of financial resources, explains Jan Goetz, co-founder and head of IQM.
In the initial phase, it is relatively easy for a startup to find venture capitalists. However, once a company reaches a certain size it becomes difficult because there are hardly any funds in Europe that invest 100 or 200 million euros at once. There is also a lack of large corporations like Google or IBM that could pump billions into new technologies. IQM has therefore decided to go public in New York in addition to Helsinki in order to gain access to US capital.
According to its own statements, the German-Finnish company is the world market leader in the quantum computer industry with 27 systems sold to date. Similar to competing products, IQM computers have so far mostly been located in research institutions.
