Oak Ridge National Lab, IBM, and AMD Launch New Co-Design Platform for Quantum Error Correction
IBM, Oak Ridge National Lab, and AMD launched a co-design platform to accelerate quantum error correction by integrating quantum processors with high-performance classical computing, targeting 100 logical qubits by 2028.
IBM, the Quantum Science Center at Oak Ridge National Laboratory, and AMD introduced a co-design platform to advance quantum error correction by tightly integrating quantum and classical computing systems. The platform pairs IBM’s 120-qubit Nighthawk processor with Oak Ridge’s Umbra HPC system, which uses AMD Instinct MI355X GPUs and EPYC CPUs to provide classical computing resources for error correction research.
The collaboration aims to scale quantum error correction methods, which are critical for achieving fault-tolerant quantum computing. Researchers will use the platform to test decoding optimization, software orchestration, and hybrid quantum-classical workflows, including concatenated codes and hardware-aware circuit optimization, to bridge the gap toward 100 logical qubits by late 2028.
IBM’s Nighthawk processor enables real-time pulse control and mid-calculation qubit measurements, while the Quantum System API allows direct access to raw hardware signals for refining error correction techniques. The platform will connect to Oak Ridge’s Leadership Computing Facility, enabling exploration of quantum integration with AI and HPC infrastructure.
The initiative aligns with the Department of Energy’s Quantum Genesis Mission, which seeks to demonstrate 100 logical qubits running 100,000 hard operations by 2028. Current IBM experiments have achieved up to 70 logical qubits and 438 hard operations, highlighting the need for a 230-fold increase in operational scale to meet the mission’s goals.