Microsoft entered into a $100 million partnership with a Canadian company after the discovery of Quantum

Canadian quantum computing firm Photonics has come out of stealth to raise $100 million for its all-silicon quantum computing platform. Among the investors is new partner Microsoft, which will develop quantum network solutions with the startup.

The investment and partnership comes as several experts in the industry are hailing Photonics' novel approach to quantum computing as a “breakthrough” for the field.

We're joining forces with @TeamPhotonic to enable the future of quantum networking over long distances—and Photonic's scalable quantum computing offering to Azure Quantum Elements. Learn more: #AzureQuantum

— Azure Quantum (@MSFTQuantum) November 9, 2023

The photonic technique involves building quantum computers with silicon spin qubits with a spin-photon interface – in other words, a computer that uses qubits made of light to perform quantum calculations on silicon hardware.

Related: IBM, Microsoft, Others Form Post-Quantum Cryptography Consortium

In quantum computing, qubits are analogous to binary computer bits. However, while a binary, or classical, computer can only perform calculations using ones and zeros, a qubit can observe special properties of quantum physics called “superposition” and “entanglement”. These quantum states allow qubits to compute in a binary bit-like manner, being able to use twos, zeros, ones and zeros, none zeros, and other slightly unfathomable combinations.

A spin qubit takes things a step further by adding electron spin. And by developing a qubit with a photonic spin interface in an all-silicon hardware solution, he believes photonics has found the missing piece of the puzzle when it comes to quantum computing.

Stephanie Simmons, Photonic's founder and chief quantum officer, expects the company to bring a fully functional, fault-tolerant quantum networking system to market within the next five years.

Per Simmons, the partnership with Microsoft helps facilitate that timeline:

We are incredibly excited to partner with Microsoft to bring these new quantum capabilities. Their extensive global infrastructure, proven platforms and the impressive scale of the Azure cloud make them the ideal partner to unleash the transformative potential of quantum computing and accelerate innovation in the quantum computing ecosystem.