Cisco adds Atom Computing to quantum networking crusade - SDxCentral

Cisco adds Atom Computing to quantum networking crusade The work will see Cisco link Atom Computing’s neutral-atom quantum hardware March 26, 2026 By Dan Meyer Have your say Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Reddit Email Share – Thinkstock Cisco signed a deal with Atom Computing to research the use of quantum networks to link neutral-atom quantum computers in support of distributed computing models, continuing Cisco’s ongoing work in quantum networking.The work will see Cisco contribute its quantum networking hardware, software, and experience in networking protocols with Atom Computing’s neutral-atom quantum hardware. The idea is to see where integration is possible to form a more “tightly coupled full-stack distributed quantum platform.”Specifics include using Cisco’s network-aware distributed quantum computing compiler to support distributed workloads across neutral-atom systems; and looking at technologies required to interface neutral-atom quantum processing units (QPUs) with Cisco’s quantum networking systems that are aligned with Cisco’s broader quantum networking roadmap.Atom Computing’s quantum efforts are based on neutral-atom systems. This involves hardware that uses light to trap neutral atoms and use those trapped neutral atoms to create nuclear-spin qubit arrays.The firm claims neutral-atom qubits “lack electrical charge and can be tightly packed into an array. The atomic array can be expanded to thousands or millions of qubits without substantially changing the overall footprint of the system.”Atom Computing initially developed a 100-qubit prototype, and has since claimed to have formed a 1,225-site atomic array supporting nearly 1,200 qubits. The firm, which has raised approximately $75 million to date, earlier this month also moved to integrate Nvidia’s NVQLink networking system into its operations.“Neutral‑atom quantum computers are uniquely suited for modularity and scaling,” Atom Computing CEO Ben Bloom noted in a statement tied to the Cisco deal. “By integrating them into advanced quantum networks, we can begin to realize architectures capable of supporting the next era of quantum applications.”Ramana Kompella, VP and head of Cisco Research, added that this agreement bolsters the networking giant’s efforts toward connecting distributed quantum computing infrastructure.“Scaling quantum computing to its full potential is a challenge the entire industry must tackle together,” Kompella noted. “At Cisco, we believe the future of quantum lies in distributed systems that connect many smaller processors, instead of relying solely on a single massive machine. This collaboration with Atom Computing allows us to explore how advanced networking technologies can help turn that vision into reality.”Cisco’s surging quantum networking crusadeCisco’s vision includes recent work with Qunnect where it provided enterprise-grade orchestration software operating across Qunnect’s deployed telecom fiber running under New York City. The trial combined Qunnect’s “room-temperature quantum hardware” with Cisco’s unified quantum networking software stack that provided automated control and synchronization across multiple network nodes.Specifically, the system integrated Qunnect’s atom-based entanglement source with Cisco’s unified quantum networking software stack. That entanglement source was from Qunnect’s Carina platform that generated entangled photon pairs at a specific size for telecom fiber transmission and at a different size for compatibility with quantum devices. It also used automatic polarization controllers to continuously compensate for “drift in deployed fiber,” and end nodes using room-temperature detectors and cryogenic equipment at the central hub.The test was conducted across Qunnect’s GothamQ fiber test bed that runs 17.6 kilometers underneath parts of Brooklyn and Manhattan. Touted trial results included the “polarization entanglement swapping over deployed telecom fiber,” the “teleportation of true single photons across an urban network,” a robust “99% polarization entanglement fidelity across all three nodes” used in the trial,” and “swapping rates” of “nearly four orders of magnitude beyond prior independent-source benchmarks.”“What we are really building is the foundations for how many quantum processors can actually come together, or quantum nodes can come together and participate in quantum communication,” Kompella told SDxCentral about its work with Qunnect. “So for us, that includes foundational elements, like entanglement sources, Bell state measurement devices … and the fabric needs to configure and reconfigure multiple times depending on how the traffic demands are. That's the thought process that has gone into devising this kind of a quantum orchestration software.”Kompella added that the trial showed that the model was “90% there in terms of all operational elements a network brings to the table, and combined with the fact that this is real noisy environment, for which we are testing this out, it's actually a pretty good proof point, but that we can actually build quantum networks of the future using the technologies that are that are basically currently available in the market.”It’s that last 10% that now remains a hurdle, with quantum compute hardware and interconnect noted as being the current areas of developmental focus.Kompella pointed to Cisco’s work with IBM that was announced last year, which calls for the duo to develop hardware for networked quantum computers, but added that this work is just part of being able to support different quantum computing modalities. Kompella pointed to some like photonic, cold atoms, neutral atoms, charged ions, and superconducting.“Our goal is to actually understand how to interconnect, not just within one modality, but across modalities, because we are really building a network for all types of modalities. We are not actually wedded to any particular technology,” Kompella said. “That is actually the next challenge, which is around how do we integrate our network with real quantum computers and can show that value in entangling computational qubits from one quantum processor to another quantum processor.” Subscribe to The Networking Channel for regular news round-ups, market reports, and more.