Amazon Patent Preps for the Quantum Future
Its recent patent could help correct errors quickly and scale devices.

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Quantum computers are more than a little bit fickle.
As tons of firms work on ways to make them more usable, Amazon is throwing its hat in the ring: The company is seeking to patent a “quantum computing monitoring system” that evaluates whether a quantum computer performs an algorithm or tasks the way it’s meant to, allowing users to track the system’s performance with a “predetermined list of metrics.”
When a user submits a request to execute an algorithm using a hybrid of classical and quantum resources, the system monitors its progress against metrics that the user selects. If the quantum system starts to fail at certain points, it will alert users and allow them to make adjustments such as fixing the parameters of the algorithm or cancelling the use of quantum resources altogether.
The consistent monitoring this system offers could help quantum users quickly identify and fix errors, and could allow these systems to scale.
Scaling is a major focus for tech giants looking to get ahead in the fledgling market. Google’s latest quantum chip, Willow, performs calculations at a fraction of the speed of the world’s best supercomputers, and has the capability to reduce errors with scale. IBM, meanwhile, announced its most advanced quantum computer yet in November. Microsoft plans to launch a commercial quantum computer this year, and announced a new program called Quantum Ready for businesses in a recent blog post.
And Amazon doesn’t want to be left behind: In November, the company launched a program called Quantum Embark, an advisory program aiming to help AWS customers understand and prepare for quantum computing to scale. The program is a part of Amazon Braket, which gives users access to quantum hardware from several different startups. It’s also not the first time we’ve seen Amazon seek to patent quantum tech.
Though the market is too nascent to tell which firms will shake out to be leaders, any IP that allows quantum to scale – or makes it easier for enterprises to access – could give Amazon an advantage in the long-run.