IBM Unveils New Quantum Architecture

IBM has announced its new quantum error correction architecture, the foundation for its upcoming large-scale quantum processor, IBM Starling, expected by 2029. The core of Starling is the low-density parity-check code (LDPC), which allows encoding many logical qubits on fewer physical qubits, reducing noise. This facilitates error correction for smooth information processing. The new "bicycle architecture" couples LDPC codes with modular hardware for long-range qubit connectivity, aiming to boost Starling's computational capacity to fault tolerance. Starling will scale to thousands of logical qubits and be available on-premise and via IBM's cloud. Initial applications include chemistry, materials science, optimization, and partial differential equations. Starling will underpin IBM's Blue Jay, a 100,000-qubit system expected by 2030, signaling a shift towards creating a cryptographically-relevant quantum computer.