Insider Brief
- ORCA Computing has delivered and installed the UK’s first public-sector photonic quantum computing system at the National Quantum Computing Centre (NQCC), fulfilling a key commitment under the UK’s Quantum Computing Testbeds program.
- The PT Series system was installed and operational within 36 hours, enabling early-stage research into hybrid quantum-classical workflows and practical quantum applications across multiple sectors.
- The installation supports the UK’s £121 million quantum strategy and will be evaluated through collaborative R&D projects, including benchmarking and use by the University of Edinburgh’s Quantum Software Lab.
PRESS RELEASE — ORCA Computing, a leading quantum computing company, today announced the successful delivery and installation of its photonic quantum computing system at the UK’s National Quantum Computing Centre (NQCC), fulfilling a commitment made as part of a major UK government investment in quantum technologies.
This achievement fulfills the successful realization of a project first announced in February 2024, when ORCA was selected to deliver one of the UK’s first photonic quantum systems under the NQCC Quantum Computing Testbeds program. Now fully installed, delivered on time, powered up and operating within thirty-six hours, it marks the first photonic quantum system installed at a UK public sector, paving the way for advanced research and experimentation, including research conducted under the UK’s £121 million quantum technology initiative.
“The installation of ORCA’s photonic quantum testbed at the NQCC marks an important step toward realising the UK’s ambition of becoming a global leader in quantum computing,” stated Dr. Simon Plant, Deputy Director for Innovation at the National Quantum Computing Centre. “By enabling early-stage access to advanced photonic technologies, we are helping to accelerate innovation and shape the future landscape of quantum applications.”
Now installed at the NQCC, the ORCA system is the first of its kind to combine multiple photonic sources within a single system. It is designed to accelerate the development of practical quantum applications and enable hybrid quantum–classical workflows essential for solving real-world problems.
“This is a major milestone in ORCA’s mission to deliver practical quantum computing,” said Richard Murray, CEO and Co-founder of ORCA Computing. “We’re proud to support the NQCC’s vision to accelerate quantum readiness across the UK. This delivery reflects the reliability, scalability as well as the maturity of our PT Series system.”
Early use has already demonstrated the platform’s capabilities. Customers have executed an 81-parameter binary optimization task, benchmarked quantum/classical generative AI models for molecular chemistry and successfully completed over 25,000 uninterrupted jobs. These achievements were recently showcased at the Digital Catapult Quantum Technology Access Programme (QTAP) event, highlighting how ORCA is accelerating real-world quantum use cases alongside a Proof-of-Concept project with the NQCC as part of its SparQ programme.
This milestone reflects both the technical maturity of the PT Series and the strength of ORCA’s collaborative ecosystem, which lays the foundation for the pursuit of commercial quantum advantage in 2026.
As a next phase, the NQCC is entering a test and evaluation period to benchmark performance and deploy the system in collaborative R&D projects, including work with the University of Edinburgh’s Quantum Software Lab (QSL), led by Chief Scientist Professor Elham Kashefi.
