Key Takeaways
- At the Quantum Developer Conference on Wednesday, IBM introduced its latest “breakthroughs” in quantum computing.
- The company’s developments are its latest efforts to expand its quantum roadmap.
- IBM shares, which have been one of the top performing stocks in the Dow Jones Industrial Average this year, hit an all-time high Wednesday morning.
IBM says its latest quantum computing developments could give it a big advantage soon.
International Business Machines (IBM) on Wednesday announced what it called “breakthroughs” in quantum computing. At the Quantum Developer Conference, IBM touted “fundamental progress on its path to delivering both quantum advantage by the end of 2026 and fault-tolerant quantum computing by 2029.”
IBM shares were up 0.5% recently, after rising nearly 4% this morning to an all-time high of $324.90. The stock has gained 44% since the start of the year, making it the third-biggest gainer in the blue-chip Dow Jones Industrial Average so far in 2025.
Why This Matters
IBM is accelerating its quantum computing plans with new hardware and software designed to outperform traditional computers in the next few years. The announcements reflect the growing competition among tech giants to achieve “quantum advantage.”
The company announced several developments, including its IBM Quantum Nighthawk processor, which is “designed with an architecture to complement high-performing quantum software to deliver quantum advantage next year: the point at which a quantum computer can solve a problem better than all classical-only methods.”
IBM said the design of the new processor can handle circuits with 30% more complexity than its previous processor and is expected to be available to users by late 2025. The company also introduced IBM Quantum Loon, a system that utilizes all the hardware elements needed for future fault-tolerant quantum computers.
The developments build on those highlighted earlier this year. In June, the company unveiled a roadmap for IBM Starling, a quantum computer that it said will be capable of performing 20,000 times the operations of quantum computers that exist today. And in August, IBM and AI chipmaker Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) said they were working together on “quantum-centric supercomputing.” AMD CEO Lisa Su underscored that momentum Wednesday, saying that AI demand is “insatiable.”