Insider Brief
- BlueQubit, a San Francisco-based startup, has raised $10 million to make quantum computing practical for real-world applications, focusing on finance, pharmaceuticals and material science.
- The company’s QSaaS platform combines classical GPUs with quantum processors to test and deploy algorithms, enabling faster and more scalable quantum solutions.
- The round was led by Nyca Partners, with participation from Restive, Chaac Ventures, NKM Capital, Presto Tech Horizons, BigStory, Untapped Ventures, Formula VC and Granatus.
San Francisco-based startup BlueQubit, which aims to make quantum computing practical for real-world applications, secured $10 million in seed funding to support its mission, TechCrunch is reporting.
The company’s Quantum Software as a Service (QSaaS) platform provides access to quantum processors and emulators, helping businesses in industries like finance, pharmaceuticals, and material science explore solutions to problems classical computers struggle to solve, the tech magazine reports. By combining quantum hardware with enterprise software, BlueQubit hopes to accelerate the adoption of quantum technologies.
Quantum computing, unlike classical computing, operates on principles of quantum mechanics, enabling processes like superposition and entanglement that allow quantum bits, or qubits, to represent and process complex information far beyond what conventional systems can achieve. For example, Google recently demonstrated a quantum chip that solved a problem in five minutes that would take the fastest supercomputer billions of years.
BlueQubit’s approach uses classical computing resources — specifically GPUs — to test quantum algorithms before running them on quantum processors.
“This approach enables us to scale effectively and pioneer novel algorithms for quantum machine learning and quantum optimization,” said Hrant Ghairbyan, BlueQubit’s CEO and co-founder, in an interview with TechCrunch.
The company claims its software can emulate quantum processes up to 100 times faster than other available options, streamlining the path for businesses exploring quantum capabilities, according to the article. By focusing on practical use cases such as financial modeling and drug development, BlueQubit aims to position itself as a leader in quantum computing integration.
The team behind BlueQubit has deep ties to leading tech institutions. Ghairbyan, an MIT graduate, contributed to a widely cited algorithm on ‘wormhole teleportation,’ later implemented by Google’s Quantum AI team. Co-founder and CTO Hayk Tepanyan, a Stanford alumnus, previously worked on Google’s infrastructure team. The two founders, both deeply immersed in quantum research, launched the company in 2022 after observing rapid advances in the field.
“We decided to start the company while sitting on surfboards in Santa Monica, CA, in the spring of 2022,” Ghairbyan told TechCrunch. “We had just heard a new announcement from the IBM Quantum team about progress on superconducting qubits, and it was clear that the quantum landscape was advancing at an incredible pace.”
The funding round was led by Nyca Partners, with participation from Restive, Chaac Ventures, and others. Nyca’s partner Tom Brown noted, “We have been looking for a team to invest in who are looking to enable financial services firms to hit the ground running once quantum is here. Hrant and Hayk have the background, skills and drive to operationalize something that until recently has mostly been theory.”
BlueQubit’s immediate focus is on expanding its software stack and strengthening its partnerships with businesses eager to explore quantum solutions. By combining classical and quantum resources, the company aims to make quantum computing accessible to industries facing the limits of traditional systems.
