The UK’s most powerful quantum computer, which will accelerate research and discovery in quantum science, engineering, and a range of other applications, will be based at the University of Cambridge as part of a new partnership with the quantum technology company IonQ. The collaboration is the University’s largest-ever corporate research partnership.

The partnership will support the creation of the IonQ Quantum Innovation Centre to be based at the Ray Dolby Centre, the new home of Cambridge’s Cavendish Laboratory. The Centre will house a state-of-the-art IonQ 256-qubit quantum computer, which will be the most powerful quantum computer in the UK when it is installed.

As part of the collaboration, Innovate UK, the UK’s innovation agency and part of UK Research and Innovation (UKRI), will provide access and computing time for UKRI’s National Quantum Computing Centre over three years. This support will enable researchers and early-stage companies from across the UK to make use of the enormous power of the first commercial-scale quantum computer at a UK university. 

The new IonQ Quantum Innovation Centre will host a research portfolio across quantum computing, quantum networks, quantum sensing, and quantum security. The partnership will also support new academic positions, postdoctoral fellows and PhD students at the University.

“Cambridge is already a critical player in the UK’s national quantum technology programme, and this partnership will supercharge that role,” said Professor Mete Atatüre, Head of the Cavendish Laboratory. “This is a true partnership, with long-term investment, shared research and co-development in all areas of quantum technology, bringing together physics, engineering, medicine, computer science, policy and more.”

Quantum computers harness quantum phenomena to achieve a level of performance which is otherwise unattainable, based on science which cannot be explained by classical physics. The shift from lab-scale quantum computers to truly application-focused systems could greatly accelerate the pace of discovery in a number of areas that will improve lives, such as ultra-secure communication networks, super-powerful computers, record-breaking quantum sensors and accelerated drug discovery.

Cambridge is home to one of the largest and most successful communities of quantum scientists and technologists in the world, working across the University. The Cavendish Laboratory has long been at the heart of this research community, and this partnership is the next chapter in that long legacy.

The IonQ partnership will support long-term research funding for quantum science and technology at Cambridge, as well as the co-development of new quantum network nodes and sensing capabilities across the University, including a strengthening of the existing Cambridge to Bristol UK quantum network.

“We’re proud that Cambridge is at the heart of the UK’s next computing revolution,” said Professor Deborah Prentice, Vice-Chancellor of the University of Cambridge. “This new and ambitious partnership is the first of its kind for a UK university. It’s not just a new facility for Cambridge — it’s one for the whole of the UK, and it will develop not only exciting new technologies but also the UK’s next generation of leaders in quantum science.”

“This historic agreement with Cambridge deepens IonQ’s commitment to the United Kingdom and accelerates our technology platform with novel research at one of the world’s most storied physics powerhouses,” said Niccolo de Masi, Chairman and CEO of IonQ. “By establishing the IonQ Quantum Innovation Centre, we are strengthening the bridge between academic discovery and commercial quantum advantage. We believe this partnership will contribute meaningfully to the UK to help advance scalable quantum computing, networking, sensing, and security.”

Unlike traditional models of siloed research stuck within disciplines, the Cambridge-IonQ partnership will bring researchers across multiple disciplines, industry partners, end users and policy experts together from the outset. This joined-up approach will ensure that scientific and technological advances are aligned with commercial and societal needs and are rapidly translated into real-world solutions.

“I am delighted that Innovate UK is supporting the University of Cambridge in establishing the Quantum Innovation Centre,” said Roger McKinlay, Challenge Director - Quantum Technologies at Innovate UK. “Back in 2020, Innovate UK awarded a small collaborative grant to Oxford Ionics — now acquired by IonQ — to help develop a UK industrial supply chain for commercial quantum computing. Just five years later, it is fantastic to see investment on this scale, which will catalyse progress in quantum, create UK jobs, and drive growth across many industrial sectors."

“This exciting new partnership will support the UK’s National Quantum Strategy, helping the UK on its mission to become a leading quantum-enabled economy,” said Professor Sir Peter Knight, Chair of the National Quantum Technology Programme (NQTP) Strategic Advisory Board for the Department of Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT). “The NQTP has fostered a great collaborative enterprise over the past 12 years and the new IonQ Quantum Innovation Centre in Cambridge is a wonderful new component in our vision to realise the potential of this transformational science. The strong collaborative foundations of the new Quantum Innovation Centre will accelerate the development of this exciting new technology, which could revolutionise areas that benefit society and the economy, including new ways of developing drugs and diagnosing disease, more precise sensors to monitor critical infrastructure, and next-generation materials for the transition to net zero.”

“This is a significant moment for brilliant researchers at the University of Cambridge which cements the UK’s credentials as a world-leader in Quantum,” said Science Minister Lord Vallance. “It will help deliver new breakthroughs to some of our most pressing shared challenges while supporting more academics, PhD students and researchers in the process - ensuring we have a rich pool of Quantum talent for years to come.

“This partnership will ensure the UK stays at the cutting edge of research and innovation – delivering jobs, growth and advances that will improve lives across the country and around the world.”

The quantum computer will be managed by Cambridge Enterprise, the University’s innovation arm. Researchers working in quantum science and technology from across the University will be able to make use of the new quantum computer once it is fully operational.