Full-stack quantum computing, from hardware to compilers and algorithms [video]

I gave this talk at PyCon Estonia recently, and thought it may be interesting to someone here. It’s an overview of what quantum computing is in principle, how a particular technology (superconducting QC) attempts to implement it, how the full stack looks like (from chip fabrication to high-level algorithm runtime). Then there’s a live demo at the end.

The presentation is intended for the general audience, no physics or science knowledge required. For the CS/programming crowd it may be interesting to recognize the challenges and problems which are similar to those of the pioneers of classical computing in the 60s and 70s: scheduling, compilation, memory management, etc.

I’ve been working at a quantum computing startup for a few years now, and this was my chance to explain what kind of work we do when building the full stack from own chip design and fabrication, to custom “OS”, SDKs, and algorithm execution runtime.

Happy to answer any questions! (Note: I’m not a physicist, and my responsibilities mostly lie in quantum control software, quantum computation, and system integration.)

Rough outline of the contents of the video:

1. Quantum physics and quantum state 2. Why pursue quantum computation (not just “to crack encryption”) 3. Types of QCs. 4. Superconducting QCs. What plays the role of a qubit (surprisingly, it’s not an electron, or an atom, or a photon) 5. How abstract algorithm description becomes electrical/microwave pulses, and what is “transpilation” and “compilation” in this context. 6. Python tools, live demo, Q&A