IIT Madras becomes first Indian institute to join IBM Quantum Network

IIT Madras has partnered with IBM to advance 'Quantum Computing Skill Development and Research' for the industries in India.

IBM on Monday announced that Indian Institute of Technology Madras (IIT-Madras) has become the first Indian institution to join the IBM Quantum Network to advance quantum computing skills development and research in India.

As a member of the IBM Quantum Network, IIT Madras will get cloud-based access to IBM's most advanced quantum computing systems and IBM's quantum expertise to explore practical applications and realize the wide-ranging benefits of this technology for business and society.

IIT Madras' Centre for Quantum Information, Communication and Computing (CQuICC) will focus on advancing core algorithms in research areas like Quantum Machine Learning, Quantum Optimization, and applications research in finance.

Researchers from IIT Madras will lead the advancement of research in the application of quantum computing with support from IBM Research India to such domains that are relevant to India.

Speaking about this collaboration, Professor V Kamakoti, Director, IIT Madras, said, "We are very excited to partner with IBM in the Quantum Science and Engineering area. We have already launched a course on Quantum Technologies under NPTEL co-taught by our faculty and professionals of IBM."

The field of quantum science and technology is a cutting-edge area of research at IIT Madras. At the Centre for Quantum Information, Communication and Computing (CQuICC), IIT Madras focuses on developing various facets of quantum technologies, including secure quantum communications, quantum sensing and metrology, as well as quantum computing and quantum information theory.

"Becoming a part of the IBM Quantum Network will provide our faculty with direct access to state-of-the-art quantum hardware and software. It enables us to use our interdisciplinary expertise to tackle some of the challenging problems in the domain of quantum computing today.: