$32.5M To Develop Quantum Computing In Israel

By Ariel Grossman, NoCamels January 01, 2023 2 minutes

As the technology matures, the authority will help make the technology accessible to the R&D industry in Israel. Courtesy Pok Rie / Pexels

Five Israeli companies will work together to advance computers, under a budget of over $32.5 million (NIS 115 million).

The Israel Innovation Authority has formed the largest consortium of its history – five companies that have all joined together with the aim of developing Israel’s quantum computing technologies.

As the technology matures, the authority will help make the technology accessible to the R&D industry in Israel.

The companies are: Israel Aerospace Industries Group’s Elta Systems division, Quantum Art, Classiq, Qedma, and Rafael Advanced Defense Systems.

Leading professors from the Hebrew University, the Weizmann Institute, the Technion, and Bar-Ilan University will support technological development.

Quantum computing is an emerging technology that uses the laws of quantum mechanics – the idea that atoms and subatomic particles behave in ways we have never experienced – to solve problems too complex for classical computers.

It can handle vast amounts of data, allowing it to precisely model molecular interactions to find the best configurations for chemical reactions or build accurate climate models for global warming and its effects.

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“The quantum computer will fundamentally change the world we live in, in a similar scale and perhaps with greater intensity than the changes that arose from the introduction of computers into our daily lives over the past fifty years,” said Dr. Ami Appelbaum, Chairman of the Innovation Authority.

“Quantum computers are of the utmost importance to the State of Israel’s resilience and the ability of the Israeli economy to continue its growth.

“In the initial stages, quantum computing will be applied to the challenges of huge databases that current computers take weeks or even years to calculate.

“As quantum computing develops, it will impact many areas of everyday life, such as personalized medicine and more. The consortium that was approved by the Innovation Authority, includes processors developed in Israel that use breakthrough scientific and technical knowledge and technologies.

“The structure of the Israeli quantum computer operations and command and control systems are also groundbreaking and unique on a global scale. The public, private and academic collaboration of this consortium will place Israel at the scientific and technological forefront of the world in quantum computing.”