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C12 and Thales develop quantum system for real-time radar tracking. C12 and Thales unveil QuantumTrack for radar tracking. French companies C12 and Thales have introduced QuantumTrack, a hybrid quantum-classical system for real-time radar tracking of multiple targets. The project has been implemented on an emulator and has reached Technology Readiness Level (TRL) 5. The next step will be testing on C12's physical processor. Quantum processor tackles complex tasks. QuantumTrack addresses one of the most challenging computational tasks in radar technology: implementing the Multiple Hypothesis Tracking algorithm. With each scan, the radar must match thousands of detections with known trajectories while filtering out noise and false targets. The number of possible combinations grows exponentially, forcing classical algorithms to limit the number of hypotheses considered to meet real-time requirements. C12 and Thales have proposed distributing computations between the classical and quantum parts of the system. The quantum processor handles the most demanding phase - selecting compatible hypotheses. The large task is divided into smaller sub-tasks, solved using quantum annealing, and then integrated with the original model. Performance comparable to classical algorithms. In two scenarios with noisy measurements and interference, QuantumTrack achieved solution times comparable to the best classical algorithms. The system was approximately 100 times faster than other tested quantum annealers. Tests were conducted on Callisto, C12's emulator that simulates the behavior of a physical processor with 20 qubits, including errors and decoherence. According to the developers, considering the already established protocol for active qubit reset, the complete QuantumTrack cycle could take about 50 ms. This, according to the partners, brings the system closer to real-time radar tracking requirements. Next step: physical processor. The project received the 2026 Quantum Effects Award in the quantum computing hardware category. The next goal for the partners is to demonstrate the system on C12's physical processor, advancing to TRL 6. The companies are considering applications in air defense systems and drone air traffic management. Thales, a global producer of information systems for aerospace, military, and maritime applications, serves as the project's system integrator. C12 is tasked with developing a quantum annealer for large-scale real-time optimization for QuantumTrack. In August, Thales introduced the Luna 8 hardware security module for creating, storing, and managing cryptographic keys. Found a mistake in the text? Select it and press CTRL+ENTER

QC Design's Meridian AI designs quantum circuits better than experts. The system outperformed both established algorithms and a general-purpose AI agent from OpenAI across a suite of over 100 fault-tolerance design tasks, suggesting a path to accelerate the development of practical quantum computers, QC Design says. "Every quantum manufacturer we meet is working on designing the best architecture for its hardware," says Dr. Ish Dhand, co-founder and CEO of QC Design, highlighting the critical need for tools like Meridian to optimize complex designs under realistic conditions. Meridian AI achieves 10x reduction in logical error rates. Meridian, QC Design's newly developed AI system, demonstrably reduces logical error rates in quantum circuit design, achieving over 10x improvement across a comprehensive test suite of 100 fault-tolerance tasks. Meridian's success isn't merely theoretical; it was validated using Plaquette, QC Design's quantum design-automation platform, which models realistic hardware imperfections to ensure genuine gains beyond superficial optimization, according to the company. This validation process is critical, as the white paper focused on circuits designed to detect errors in protected quantum information, spanning ten error-correction code families and representing major quantum computing platforms. Compared to five leading published algorithms, Meridian achieved a median reduction exceeding 10x in logical error rates, a significant step toward viable fault-tolerant quantum computers. Against the GPT-6 Astra agent, the AI delivered a median 40% reduction, with peak improvements reaching 98.4%, equivalent to a 63x decrease in logical error. The underlying approach behind Meridian, according to QC Design, extends beyond quantum computing, offering potential for scientific problems requiring both solution generation and expert validation. Plaquette platform validates quantum designs under realistic imperfections. Plaquette, QC Design's quantum design-automation platform, functions as a key component for validating Meridian AI's designs under the complexities of real-world hardware imperfections, ensuring improvements aren't merely theoretical successes. QuiX Quantum uses Plaquette's photonics capabilities to tailor fault-tolerant designs to its specific hardware, while Yaqumo employs the software to compare codes and decoders for neutral-atom systems, the company says. QC Design's approach extends beyond simple simulation; the company has forged partnerships with C12, QUDORA Technologies, and ZuriQ, each integrating Plaquette into their unique qubit architectures, carbon nanotubes, trapped ions, and more, to optimise error correction routines and test fault-tolerance protocols before fabrication. These collaborations highlight a growing industry need for tools that accurately model and address the challenges of building practical quantum computers. Founded in 2021 and based in Ulm, Germany, QC Design secured EUR 1.5 million in equity alongside a EUR 2.5 million European Innovation Council Accelerator grant, a EUR 4 million package announced July 16, 2024, with Quantonation Ventures among its investors, the company states. "Over 10x reduction in logical error rates with Meridian," is a key outcome validated by this platform, according to the company, and reflects a growing trend toward AI-driven optimisation in quantum hardware development. The platform's ability to accurately model real-world imperfections is critical, as Dr. This improvement signifies a substantial leap in the efficiency of designing circuits that detect errors in protected quantum information. Stay current See today's quantum computing news on Quantum Zeitgeist for the latest breakthroughs in qubits, hardware, algorithms, and industry deals.

C12 puts its carbon qubits in Classiq to seduce 'quantum developers' The French start-up C12 announces a partnership with quantum development software publisher Classiq to participate in the democratization of this field. All in an evolving world, but one that is entering the preparation phase for future uses. C12, one of France's specialists in quantum processors, and Classiq, publisher of a software platform dedicated to quantum computing, have formalized a partnership. Their alliance will attempt to make hardware (based on carbon nanotubes at C12) more accessible to developers. The overall objective - claimed by both players - is to accelerate the adoption of these technologies by companies and research centers. One of the best quantum compilers in the world. Concretely, the agreement will allow integration of C12's emulator (Callisto) into Classiq's Integrated Development Environment. Callisto reproduces the physical parameters and real noise of the architecture developed by the start-up (based on spin qubits in carbon nanotubes). While waiting for C12's chips to mature, it allows running quantum algorithms involving up to 13 qubits on classical processors. 'The interest of the partnership is to connect [our] emulator to a high-level software platform, used by developers and industrial players to design and compile [...] large-scale quantum algorithms,' deciphers Pierre Desjardins, CEO and co-founder of C12, for Le MagIT. 'Classiq has developed one of the best compilers in the world for quantum computing,' he continues. Now the compiler is one of the keys that can change the status of quantum computers. 'It's what transforms abstract algorithms into instructions executable by hardware. It's also what optimizes qubit utilization and error management,' explains the expert who studied at École Polytechnique, Columbia and MIT. Implicitly, it's also about C12 existing in Classiq's ecosystem as a 'backend provider' alongside big names like IBM, AWS, Microsoft, Google or NVIDIA. There are 'quantum developers' and 'quantum developers' The target of this strategy is what should now be called the 'quantum developer' (even if it's established that one can simultaneously determine the position and velocity of this developer). 'This market remains relatively limited, but it's evolving rapidly,' observes Pierre Desjardins. This community would, in fact, be driven by two 'complementary dynamics.' The first is 'an expert community, coming from academia and R&D, which already masters quantum concepts.' The second is 'a broader population of developers, engineers or data scientists, who are interested in quantum with increasingly abstract and accessible tools (note: including Classiq),' compares Pierre Desjardins. 'The challenge is therefore not only the current number of quantum developers, but the democratization of access [to these technologies],' he summarizes. Platforms like Classiq play an important role in this project since they allow non-specialists to design and test quantum algorithms without having to dive into qubits. The active preparation phase for future uses. This partnership around democratization occurs in a world that is certainly promising, but still in its early stages. 'Quantum computing is not yet ready to solve large-scale industrial production problems on its own,' concedes Pierre Desjardins. 'But it has entered an active preparation phase for these uses,' he immediately adds. 'The subject is no longer "will quantum work someday?", but rather how to prepare now the architectures, tools and use cases that will allow exploiting it as hardware progresses,' insists the expert. Not yet processors, but already industrial collaborations. Today, C12's processors are still in development. 'But thanks to approaches like realistic emulation, HPC-quantum hybrid workflows and working with industrial partners, it's already possible to explore concrete cases, qualify their interest and guide technological choices,' assures Pierre Desjardins. 'This is the phase we consider critical today.' Among these industrial partners, C12 is already working with Thales on radar system optimization problems. Other projects are being conducted in chemistry and aeronautics for simulation of complex systems. C12 won't give names 'for confidentiality reasons.' 'But these collaborations illustrate the growing interest [of industrial and institutional players] in preparing, right now, the future integration of quantum computing into their workflows,' predicts Pierre Desjardins.