Ibm Vs Google Vs Startups The Quantum Computing Race Intensifies

Bonisiwe Shabane

-Dec 4, 2025, 8:54 PM

ibm vs google vs startups the quantum computing race intensifies

IBM follows a clear roadmap aiming for 100,000 qubits and fosters an open-access quantum development ecosystem. Google focuses on bold breakthroughs and practical algorithms while pursuing a million-qubit fault-tolerant quantum computer. Startups like IonQ and PsiQuantum innovate rapidly with alternative architectures to tackle quantum computing’s biggest challenges. Quantum computing, once confined to academic whiteboards in science fiction, has now become a central focus in technological race. Leading this charge are three powerful forces: IBM, Google, and a fast-growing wave of startups. It's not solely an issue of attaining scientific milestones anymore; it's also about exploring new frontiers in computing and establishing technological superiority.

Quantum physics advances can only get you so far; your success will depend on shrewd tactical foresight and closely coordinated action. Quantum computing is emerging as a transformative field, promising to tackle computational problems far beyond the reach of today’s classical computers. At the heart of this revolution is the pursuit of quantum advantage – the milestone where a quantum computer definitively outperforms classical machines on a useful task. Achieving quantum advantage is a critical goal for industry leaders and researchers, as it would validate that quantum computers can solve certain problems faster or more efficiently than any classical computer, or even solve... Tech giants like IBM, Google, and Microsoft have all heavily invested in quantum technologies, each vying to be the first to reach this milestone. Their race is not just one of prestige; it carries high stakes for areas such as cryptography, optimization, and drug discovery, where quantum computing could enable breakthroughs unattainable by classical means.

IBM, a long-time pioneer in computing, is now positioning itself at the forefront of this quantum race, even as rivals like Google and Microsoft and a host of startups intensify their efforts. In this report, we provide a deeper look at what quantum advantage entails, how IBM and its competitors are approaching the challenge, and why this race could revolutionize industries worldwide. In simple terms, quantum advantage refers to the point at which a quantum computer can perform a task that a classical computer cannot practically execute within a reasonable timeframe . It marks the moment when quantum computation isn’t just theoretically faster, but demonstrably superior for a specific problem. IBM defines quantum advantage as running a computation more accurately, cheaply, or efficiently on a quantum system than on any classical system . In other words, it’s when a quantum solution outpaces all known classical algorithms for a given problem.

This concept is closely related to what has been called “quantum supremacy,” though many experts prefer “advantage” for its emphasis on practical usefulness and its avoidance of the misleading notion that quantum computers will... Importantly, quantum advantage doesn’t mean quantum computers excel at every task – rather, they outperform classical computers in certain domains or problem instances. For example, quantum devices might efficiently simulate complex quantum systems or optimize certain combinatorial problems that would take classical machines an infeasible amount of time (e.g. millions of years). Achieving this threshold is an essential proof point that the quirky principles of quantum mechanics – superposition, entanglement, and quantum parallelism – can be harnessed for real computational gains. It’s worth noting that early claims of quantum advantage will likely be narrow and subject to debate.

Researchers must rigorously verify that a quantum result is correct and that no improved classical algorithm can match it . In practice, the first demonstrations may involve hybrid approaches where quantum processors work in tandem with classical computers, rather than acting in isolation . Because classical techniques continue to improve as well, any claim of quantum advantage invites scrutiny: the community will attempt to either reproduce the quantum result or find clever classical methods to refute the advantage... Therefore, quantum advantage is not expected to be a single sudden victory, but rather a series of increasingly solid demonstrations over time . Nonetheless, the first clear-cut examples – where a quantum computer solves a problem with unambiguous superiority – will herald a new era in computing. According to IBM’s researchers, this era of practical quantum advantage is on the horizon, with predictions that the first confirmed advantages could be achieved in the next few years .

IBM has been a driving force in quantum computing research and is determined to be a leader in reaching quantum advantage. The company has laid out an ambitious roadmap that pairs hardware breakthroughs with software and ecosystem development. On the hardware front, IBM has steadily scaled up the size and quality of its quantum processors. In late 2023, IBM unveiled the “Condor” quantum processing unit with 1,121 qubits, the largest count of any quantum chip to date . Alongside it, IBM introduced Quantum System Two, a new modular quantum computer architecture designed to link multiple smaller quantum chips into one system . This modular approach is critical for scaling: instead of building one gigantic, error-prone chip, IBM can interconnect several more manageable and less error-prone chips (such as its 133-qubit “Heron” processors) to act as a...

The ultimate goal of IBM’s roadmap is to deliver a practically useful, fully error-corrected quantum computer by 2029 . In other words, IBM aims to build a fault-tolerant quantum machine within this decade – a bold target that, if met, would likely imply achieving quantum advantage (and beyond) for real-world problems IBM’s Quantum System Two (left) and a 133-qubit Heron quantum processor (right) – key hardware innovations in IBM’s quest for quantum advantage. IBM’s latest quantum processors include the 1,121-qubit “Condor” chip, the largest quantum processor built so far . A clear, factual, and human-friendly comparison of IBM, Google, and Microsoft’s approaches to quantum hardware in 2025. Learn about real-world applications, expert opinions, case studies, and the future of quantum computing.

Quantum computing is no longer science fiction — it’s happening now.Companies like IBM, Google, and Microsoft are racing to build the most powerful quantum computers.But each company is taking a different path. In this blog, I’ll share a simple, real-world guide to their strategies, based on factual data, industry expert insights, and my personal experience writing about technology for over two years.If you want a clear... Quantum computing is supposed to change the world — but right now, it feels confusing.Everywhere you look, there’s a flood of big announcements: It sounds amazing… but it leaves most people asking: Half a century ago, a factory in Poughkeepsie, New York, cranked out computer hardware. The profits from mainframes financed pampered employees, scientific research and a dividend that made International Business Machines the most valuable company on the planet.

Now, a diminished IBM gets most of its revenue from soft things: computer programs and business services. But it’s at work on a new kind of machine that could return Poughkeepsie to its glory days. This is where it will assemble quantum computers, the magical devices designed to tackle mathematical challenges that would overwhelm an ordinary computer. If quantum delivers on its promises, engineers will use it to make giant strides in the design of drugs, vaccines, batteries and chemicals. Last year Boston Consulting Group predicted that come 2040, quantum hardware and software providers will be taking in $90 billion to $170 billion of annual revenue. IBM has been part of this rapidly evolving technology since the turn of the century.

Leading its effort: Jay Gambetta, a 46-year-old physicist from Australia who oversees 3,000 employees on six continents doing research. He will not stint quantum, since he has spent his entire career in that field. Gambetta joined IBM’s Watson Research Center, 39 miles south of the Poughkeepsie factory, in 2011 after postdoc years at Yale and then on the faculty at the University of Waterloo. He says, “While I like teaching, really I wanted to build.” The battle to harness the potential of quantum computing has sparked a fierce rivalry between technology powerhouses IBM and Google. Both companies are investing billions into research and development, pushing the limits of physics to build the world's first usable quantum computer.

Why It Matters The stakes couldn't be higher. A functional quantum computer could transform industries such as: IBM recently announced their 133-qubit processor, while Google claims to have achieved quantum supremacy with their 53-qubit Sycamore processor. Both announcements signify important milestones in this intense competition. Investments on the Rise The global quantum computing market is experiencing unprecedented growth: This surge in investment indicates a significant shift in computing capabilities.

Industries ranging from pharmaceuticals to cybersecurity are positioning themselves to leverage the advantages offered by quantum technology, recognizing its potential to tackle complex problems that classical computers cannot solve efficiently. To join the CNBC Technology Executive Council, go to cnbccouncils.com/tec While there are still differing perspectives on how long it will be until certain types of quantum computing hit commercial viability, experts from big tech companies like Google and IBM as well as smaller... Yet, in a space teeming with unknowns, there's still a lot to learn about the potential fate of a world in quantum's hands. Unlike classical computing, which processes information through bits that can exist in either zeros or ones, quantum computing is an evolving field where quantum bits (or qubits) can occupy both zero and one in... These qubits can then basically communicate with each other to further increase the speed and complexity of information processing in a calculation.

Within the field of quantum computing, there are two types of technologies. What most people refer to when they talk about it is universal gate-based models. The second model is called annealing quantum. "It's a different technology," explained Mandy Birch, CEO and founder of TreQ, a quantum systems engineering company focused on manufacturing applications. Companies like Google, Microsoft, Amazon and IBM are aggressively pursuing gate-model quantum computing, each with different qubit technologies and strategies. D-Wave is largely working with annealing technology, which primarily serves companies that want to optimize their operations.

Annealing models still have a ways to go, but unlike gate models that researchers are still developing, annealing is able to deliver commercial value today. Quantum computing, often hailed as the next frontier of technological innovation, has long promised exponential computational power that could transform industries from cybersecurity to pharmaceuticals. However, practical quantum computing has remained elusive due to the challenges of qubit stability and error correction. Enter Alice & Bob, a Paris-based startup pioneering a revolutionary approach to quantum computation using cat qubits—a novel error-resistant quantum bit technology inspired by Schrödinger’s cat paradox. The company recently secured a €100 million ($104 million) Series B funding round, propelling it toward its goal of building the world's first useful fault-tolerant quantum computer (FTQC) by 2030. This article provides an in-depth exploration of Alice & Bob’s technology, the broader quantum computing landscape, and the implications of their breakthrough for the future of computing.

To understand the significance of Alice & Bob’s advancements, it is essential to look back at the history of quantum computing. Concept of quantum computation introduced As of March 2025, leading technology companies—Google, IBM and Microsoft —have made significant progress in their respective quantum computing roadmaps, each achieving significant milestones that bring us closer to practical quantum applications. While these companies share a common objective of reducing quantum error correction, their approaches and methodologies differ. Google and IBM primarily utilize superconducting qubits built upon quantum dots (artificial atoms), whereas Microsoft focuses on topological qubits using Majorana particles, exotic quantum particles expected to enhance resilience to errors. Let’s take a closer look at each company’s quantum roadmap and their achievements so far.

Quantum error correction (QEC) is a foundational concept in quantum computing, designed to protect fragile quantum information from errors. Qubits — the fundamental units of quantum computers — can easily lose their state through interactions with the environment (temperature fluctuations, or magnetic fields), a process called decoherence. When this happens, the quantum state “collapses”, meaning the stored quantum information is lost. As a result, the entire computation on a quantum computer becomes corrupted, and the output is no longer reliable (see the Shor’s 1995 paper). This susceptibility to errors makes it difficult to perform long, complex calculations accurately. This is where QEC comes in.

Instead of storing information in a single physical qubit, QEC encodes the information across several entangled physical qubits to create a more stable logical qubit. Because the information is spread out, losing one qubit doesn’t destroy the computation. The system can reconstruct the original quantum state, making the data more resilient to noise and errors. Shor’s pioneering work on QEC, specifically his nine-qubit code, introduced a method to use redundant physical qubits to protect a single logical qubit. The key insight is that the full information of a quantum state is not stored in any single qubit but is instead encoded in the entanglement and collective state of multiple qubits. This redundancy allows QEC to detect and correct errors caused by decoherence, enabling reliable computation even in the fragile environment of a quantum computer.

Ibm Vs Google Vs Startups The Quantum Computing Race Intensifies

People Also Search

IBM Follows A Clear Roadmap Aiming For 100,000 Qubits And

Quantum Physics Advances Can Only Get You So Far; Your

IBM, A Long-time Pioneer In Computing, Is Now Positioning Itself

This Concept Is Closely Related To What Has Been Called

Researchers Must Rigorously Verify That A Quantum Result Is Correct