New York | Global tech giant IBM is aiming to open its quantum computer in Andhra Pradesh’s Amaravati by March next year, a senior company official has said.
India has “strong energy” from an education and skilling perspective in the relatively newer quantum computing space, but needs to focus more on the application research side as the future winners can emerge from this front, the official has said.
Scott Crowder, vice-president for quantum adoption at the company, said the company has partnered with India’s largest IT services exporter TCS to install the ‘IBM Quantum System Two’ and the same is projected to be ready by end of first quarter of 2026.
Speaking to reporters at the Thomas J. Watson Research Center, which is the headquarters for IBM Research, Crowder said while geographic locations are not entirely important when it comes to advanced technologies like cloud computing, sovereigns’ insistence on storing data locally is part of the reasons for having a compute centre in the European Union and also in India.
IBM has announced nine quantum computational centres, of which six are operational, including ones in its home country of the US, two in Japan and one each in Canada and South Korea. Apart from the upcoming one in Amravati’s Quantum Valley Tech Park, it has upcoming facilities in Spain and US’ Chicago, Crowder said.
The company is keen to develop the quantum ecosystem in India and is partnering with a multitude of enterprises like IT services company LTIMindtree, government’s National Quantum Mission and also educational bodies like IITs, Crowder said.