Just now
Investments in quantum computing surpassed $2.35 billion last year, and recent advancements show the technology’s potential to solve demanding computing challenges across pharmaceuticals, chemicals, automotive, energy and materials, and finance. Possible use cases include modeling molecular structure for pharmaceutical companies, improving catalyst designs in chemicals, and advancing autonomous vehicle technology, to name a few. With such a wide range of applications, McKinsey estimated that quantum computing could create nearly $1.3 trillion in value by 2035.
Traditional computers operate through “bits” that switch either on or off, as signified by either 0 or 1. Quantum computers use the quantum state of an object to produce what’s known as a “qubit” that can be 0 and 1 simultaneously. This enables quantum computers to be exponentially faster at processing algorithms — pairing massive data stacks with complex variables concurrently to solve computationally intensive calculations in a very short time, compared to classical computers, where calculations are made one at a time.
While simple quantum computers already exist at about 50 qubits, there are challenges with the stability and scalability of near-term quantum hardware that need to be addressed to accelerate the timeline of quantum computing and unlock revenue opportunities. That’s why we are excited to announce our investment in Haiqu, a Palo Alto, CA-based quantum software company focused on enhancing the performance of quantum processors.
Originally founded in 2023 within the Creative Destruction Lab’s Quantum stream, Haiqu is leveraging artificial intelligence (AI) alongside distributed computing techniques to build an enabling software layer for quantum computers to accelerate their practical viability and feasibility. The company is led by co-founders Richard Givhan (CEO) and Mykola Maksymenko (CTO), who have a blend of experience in physics, AI, and autonomous mobility.
The team has pioneered a breakthrough approach to mapping large-scale quantum computing applications to small, error-prone quantum processors. Their approach effectively maximizes the capacity of quantum hardware and reduces algorithms’ sensitivity to noise by an order of magnitude — all while being agnostic to the type of quantum platform. Haiqu aims to provide a leap in the path towards practical quantum computing.
Haiqu’s primary mission is to productize its enabling middleware layer and to set the groundwork for more targeted applications. Machine learning is expected to be a key beneficiary of quantum computing via superior data representation, more efficient optimization routines, and streamlining of generative sampling tasks. This is naturally relevant to areas such as mobility and autonomous driving, as it will impact use cases ranging from physics-informed simulations for sophisticated digital twins, complex production line optimization, and more efficient machine perception involving LiDAR and sensor data and others. Beyond these applications, the team anticipates broadening its scope to other potential areas, such as the discovery of novel chemicals and materials.
“We’ve been watching the quantum computing space for years, but the hardware and hype has kept us just watching. Haiqu caught our attention with their optimization software that boosts quantum hardware to solve practical industry problems. We are so thrilled to support the Haiqu team as they tackle this challenging and exciting frontier.” — Jim Adler, founder and general partner, Toyota Ventures
A defining aspect of Haiqu’s technology is its simplification of larger quantum circuits into compact representations with the same functionality. Leveraging a blend of methodologies from edge AI, high-performance computing, and numerical physics, this approach handles complex quantum algorithms previously deemed unattainable for near-term hardware.
We are proud to support the Haiqu team as they work to create key breakthroughs in circuit compression and quantum distributed computing to help make powerful quantum computers a reality in a feasible timeline. Toyota Ventures founder and general partner Jim Adler and Frontier Fund senior associate Chris Abshire drove Toyota Ventures’ participation in Haiqu’s pre-seed funding round, which was led by MaC VC along with SOMA capital, u.ventures, SID Venture Partners, and Roosh Ventures.
Visit the Haiqu website or the Toyota Ventures portfolio page to learn more.