Technology

EDBI invests in quantum computing startup Rigetti's US$79m Series C round


CALIFORNIA-BASED quantum computing startup Rigetti Computing on Wednesday said it has raised US$79 million in a Series C funding round led by Bessemer Venture Partners, to advance its efforts in making quantum computing commercially viable.

EDBI, the corporate investment arm of Singapore’s Economic Development Board, also participated in the round, along with Franklin Templeton, Alumni Ventures Group, DCVC, Morpheus Ventures and Northgate Capital.

“This round of financing brings us one step closer to delivering quantum advantage to the market,” said Chad Rigetti, founder and chief executive of Rigetti.

The company builds and delivers integrated quantum systems over the cloud, and develops software solutions optimised for hybrid quantum-classical computing. 

Such hybrid models which leverage both quantum and classical computations are touted as one of the more practical approaches in quantum computing. Otherwise, quantum machines can be unreliable, error-prone and noisy.

Founded in 2013, Rigetti owns and operates Fab-1, the world’s first dedicated quantum chip foundry. It is dually focused on building scalable, error-corrected quantum systems and supporting high-performance access to current systems over the cloud, the company said.

“Quantum computing will drive a paradigm shift in high-performance computers as we continue pushing the boundaries of science deeper into the realms of science fiction,” said Tomer Diari, a deep-tech investor from Bessemer Venture Partners. 

“Quantum technology has the potential to unlock significant advancements in biology, chemistry, logistics and material science, and we believe that Rigetti provides the most immediate and clear path to a production-grade system in the market,” added Mr Diari, who has joined the company’s board.

Mark Leslie, who participated in Rigetti’s Series C round, will also join the board.

In December 2019, Rigetti launched a functional 32-qubit quantum computer that is currently available through Amazon Braket and its own Quantum Cloud Services platform. In addition, the company recently received an US$8.6 million award from the US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency to build a quantum system capable of outperforming classical computers.





READ SOURCE

This website uses cookies. By continuing to use this site, you accept our use of cookies.