DARPA Adds BlueQubit to Quantum Computing Program

California-based startup BlueQubit announced that it was chosen by the Defense Advanced Research Programs Agency for the Imagining Practical Applications for a Quantum Tomorrow program.

DARPA’s decision reflects a commitment to quantum innovation with a focus on developing machine learning algorithms for Noisy Intermediate-Scale Quantum devices, BlueQubit said Monday.

According to BlueQubit CEO Hrant Gharibyan, DARPA recognized that his company is working on areas where classical computing is lacking such as in Gibbs sampling.

Hayk Tepanyan, BlueQubit’s chief technology officer, explained that his company is betting on hybrid quantum and classical algorithms such as the Quantum Approximate Optimization Algorithm to realize the full potential of NISQ devices even without fault-tolerant quantum computers.

The company said in a press release that the introduction of quantum hardware with over 100 qubits and 10,000 two-qubit gates could have implications for ongoing cybersecurity challenges with defense and the training of large AI models.

The company added that the hardware expertise of partner company QuEra would support the project.

Earlier in October, DARPA named Infleqtion and Rigetti Computing to the IMPAQT program.