The VLQ quantum computer was officially put into operation at the IT4Innovations National Supercomputing Center in Ostrava, part of the Technical University of Ostrava. It is only the second publicly accessible quantum computer in Europe and cost around CZK 125 million, co-financed by the European HPC Joint Undertaking and the LUMI-Q consortium of eight countries.

According to IT4Innovations director Vít Vondrák, the new system will support research in areas such as quantum machine learning, drug and vaccine development, new materials, transport optimization, and security. One of the first projects will focus on cleaning satellite images. VLQ will also be connected to the Karolina supercomputer, combining quantum and classical computing capacities.

Based on 24 qubits in a star-shaped topology, VLQ offers an efficient architecture that distinguishes it from competing machines. While quantum computers are still in their early stages, Vondrák emphasized their vast future potential. The Ostrava center, already home to the country’s most powerful supercomputers, will now play a key role in Europe’s quantum research landscape.

Source: CTK

Prepared by the team of foreign offices CzechTrade Osaka and Tokyo