IBM Quantum

Qiskit v1.2 is here! Take a look at the latest IBM Quantum Blog for release notes: https://lnkd.in/eThBkc_N This minor version release includes a number of important new features and improvements, all aimed at boosting the Qiskit SDK’s industry-leading performance and functionality. We are laser-focused on Qiskit’s position as the most powerful, high-performant quantum SDK in the world, and we believe we are continuing to maintain that in Qiskit v1.2 through significant enhancements to the performance and overall quality of the Qiskit transpiler.

Bringing useful quantum computing to the world requires also making the world quantum-safe. And it’s even more important that we reverberate that mission when it comes to our own infrastructure. That’s why we’re pursuing a comprehensive, long-term plan to integrate quantum-safe security protocols across all IBM hardware, software, and services. It all starts with ensuring that the IBM Quantum Platform, which provides cloud access to our fleet of utility-scale quantum systems, is fully quantum safe—using a host of tools that we’ve already made available for enterprises looking to begin their quantum safe journeys as well. This transformation will be conducted in stages, the first of which is already taking place now. Today, we are working to implement post-quantum encryption to enable quantum-safe Transport Layer Security (TLS). This legacy encryption works with the IBM Quantum Platform and extends through the firewall that protects the IBM Cloud, and soon it will be protected by quantum-safe encryption. Our goal is for researchers and developers that use our quantum services to trust that when they submit a quantum computational task to IBM Quantum Platform, it will be quantum safe from the client down into the cloud services layer. From there we can continue this initiative into Qiskit Runtime, and later across all IBM hardware and software. Head to the IBM Quantum blog for more details: https://ibm.co/4ctUu0E

Yesterday, the US National Institute of Standards and Technology published their first set of standards that will help guide organizations on their journeys to migrate to post-quantum cryptography. As we begin to prepare for a quantum world, we need to understand the importance of these new standards and how they will be the bedrock in our mission to make the world quantum safe. Watch our panel hosted by IBM Fellow and Quantum Safe Lead Ray Harishankar for a deep dive on the significance of today’s NIST announcement, common use case considerations for enterprise organizations, and to better understand how IBM Quantum Safe will drive community collaboration to support crypto-agility in the near and distant future. https://ibm.co/4dokwUt

Today, the US National Institute of Standards and Technology published the first set of post-quantum cryptography standards, formalizing three algorithms to strengthen modern public-key cryptography infrastructure for the quantum era. We’re proud to share that two of the standards were developed by IBM cryptography researchers in Zurich with external collaborators, and a third was co-developed by a scientist who has since joined IBM. The algorithms that will chart the path forward for organizations around the world transitioning post-quantum cryptography are: - ML-KEM — a key encapsulation mechanism selected for general encryption, such as for accessing secured websites - ML-DSA — a lattice-based algorithm chosen for general-purpose digital signature protocols - SLH-DSA — a stateless hash-based digital signature scheme At the heart of our mission to bring useful quantum computing to the world is to also make the world quantum safe. Now that these algorithms have become the standard, they will be foundational to IBM guiding the enablement of organizations in their journeys to execute quantum-safe migrations in tandem with other cybersecurity modernization efforts. Learn more about NIST’s post-quantum cryptography standards at the IBM Research Blog here: https://ibm.co/3YE4vFz

Don’t miss the IBM Quantum Safe Workshop at Black Hat USA on August 7! This half-day workshop will dive deep into the world of cryptographically relevant quantum computers, explore the journey to quantum-safe cryptography solutions, and offer the opportunity to experience our cutting-edge tools firsthand. In this session, you can expect to learn the impact of quantum-related risks and experience a never-before-seen demo of IBM Quantum Safe Explorer and Remediator. There will also be a fireside chat, “The Quantum-Safe Journey,” which will offer attendees an interactive discussion on the journey toward implementing quantum-safe practices and the opportunity to hear from experts about the challenges and best practices for transitioning to quantum-safe cryptography. For more session info, head over to: https://ibm.co/3YuG0dW #BHUSA

IBM's Lory Piccirilli Thorpe recently sat down with Dr. Hoon Wei Lim to chat about how NCS Group and IBM are collaborating to help clients prepare their quantum-safe readiness journey, including an understanding of current and future cryptographic assets, addressing cybersecurity risks associated with cryptographically relevant quantum computing and future-proofing the management of their cryptography. At the upcoming IBM Think Singapore event on 15 August 2024, NCS will be an invited speaker for an IBM Quantum Technology Breakout, sharing their expert perspectives on how enterprises can harness this critical technology to mitigate cybersecurity risks. Register for #ThinkSingapore for an opportunity to join this Breakout session: https://ibm.co/4d6FpTI #IBMPartners #quantumsafe

We’re thrilled to introduce IBM Quantum Developer Conference, an exclusive, first-of-its kind event—taking place in person at our Yorktown Heights research lab in New York from 13-15 November, 2024. The theme for the inaugural IBM Quantum Developer Conference, Performance by Qiskit, will showcase the Qiskit software stack’s unparalleled performance, modularity, and capability for enabling utility-scale work. This event will bring together developers from around the globe to explore the latest updates in the IBM Quantum roadmap and experience hands-on demos of state-of-the-art IBM Quantum software tools. Across the three-day event, you can expect a bevy of technical talks, collaborative workshops, office hours, and lab tours in addition to opportunities to network with with researchers, engineers, and experts from IBM and the quantum community. You can also expect a Quantum state-of-the-union address by VP of IBM Quantum, Jay Gambetta. We invite members of the quantum community, especially active Qiskit users with substantial experience in quantum information science and engineering, to apply to attend. Space is limited, so submit your application by 30 September, 2024. Selected applicants will be notified starting the week of 12 August, 2024. To learn more and apply to be an attendee, head over to the IBM Quantum Blog: https://ibm.co/3Yd7ZyB

We’re entering a partnership with the National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST) in Japan to promote the development of the quantum hardware component supply chain and the industry use-cases for quantum computing. AIST is one of the largest national laboratories in Japan, and we are looking forward to partnering with them on initiatives that will accelerate the use of quantum technologies, create opportunities for Japanese industry clients, and develop quantum hardware components in the region. This latest agreement with AIST builds on the foundations we’ve laid with our partnerships with The University of Tokyo, Keio University, and RIKEN—working together to further grow quantum computing in Japan. To learn more, read the press release here: https://ibm.co/3SkaZ8l

The 2024 edition of UnitaryHack (Unitary Fund) has wrapped up! Several Qiskit projects participated in this year’s hack, with participants collaborating on the development of features, fixing bugs, and improving documentation to support the growth and accessibility of quantum computing. We participated directly with 15 issues across 4 projects offering $1600USD in bounties that participants could earn: Qiskit: https://ibm.co/4f8uhHM Aer: https://ibm.co/4bSR2MZ Rustworkx: https://ibm.co/3WvXAf1 openqasm3_parser: https://ibm.co/4f8uef4 In addition to the issues coming directly from us, 15 other issues related to Qiskit were launched from 7 entirely separate projects and companies, offering an additional $1550 USD in bounties. This speaks to how well Qiskit is positioned within the larger quantum computing ecosystem. We are pleased to share that 11 issues were closed by contributors from Qiskit projects. For more details about the issues, you can check out this Airtable: https://ibm.co/4daEbGP

IBM Quantum is partnering with Fermilab as a part of their Superconducting Quantum Materials and Systems Center. We expect this partnership to further accelerate critical technologies and applications of superconducting quantum systems and expand quantum workforce development programs. The SQMS Center is a DOE National Quantum Information Science Research Center, hosted by Fermilab, and has been approved by the U.S. Department of Energy Office of Science. It features over 500 experts from over 30 institutions collaborating together. IBM Quantum will focus on five critical areas: large-scale cryogenics, superconducting qubit noise sources, quantum interconnects, quantum computing applications for fundamental physics, and quantum workforce development. To learn more about our partnership, read the press release here: https://ibm.co/3YatC2C