Comcast, Classiq, and AMD Demonstrate Quantum-Optimized Internet Resilience

Comcast, Classiq, and AMD Demonstrate Quantum-Optimized Internet Resilience Comcast, in collaboration with Classiq and AMD, has announced the completion of a technical trial that leverages quantum algorithms to enhance the resilience and reliability of global internet routing. As network demand grows, identifying independent backup paths that minimize latency while avoiding correlated failures—such as two links failing simultaneously due to a shared environmental hazard—becomes a “combinatorial explosion” that classical computers struggle to solve. This partnership shifted the problem from theoretical research to practical application, demonstrating how quantum software can optimize real-world telecommunications infrastructure. The trial focused on a fundamental network design challenge: identifying vertex-disjoint backup paths for network sites. In a network graph G = (V, E), a primary path P1 and a backup path P2 are considered disjoint if they share no common vertices or edges (excluding the source). This ensures that if a primary site is taken offline for maintenance and a secondary site unexpectedly fails, traffic can be seamlessly rerouted without service degradation. By modeling this as an optimization problem, the team aimed to find the most efficient routes within an exponentially large solution space. To execute the complex calculations, the team utilized the Quantum Approximate Optimization Algorithm (QAOA), a hybrid approach where classical computers handle objective function calculations while quantum processors explore the solution landscape. The trial employed AMD Instinct™ GPUs for accelerated simulation, allowing the team to iterate at a “qubit scale” (up to 32 qubits) that is currently difficult to achieve on quantum hardware alone. This hybrid workflow allowed for rapid validation of algorithm behavior across various change management scenarios before running them on actual quantum backends. Technically, the problem was encoded into a mathematical Hamiltonian (H), a function representing the “energy landscape” of the network. The objective function minimized total latency ∑ cij xij while incorporating heavy penalty terms for violating constraints like path connectivity or vertex disjointness. A specific component was added to penalize “correlated risks,” effectively training the algorithm to avoid pairs of links that might appear redundant on a map but are susceptible to the same physical hazards. The results confirmed that the most frequently sampled “bitstrings” from the quantum execution corresponded to valid, optimal routing designs in both independent and highly correlated failure scenarios. By successfully identifying unique backup paths in real-time, the trial proved that quantum-classical convergence is ready to tackle the “NP-hard” optimization tasks central to modern telecommunications. This moves the industry closer to a future where quantum-ready software is an integral part of maintaining a stable, scalable, and autonomous internet. For a deeper dive, you can read the official press release from Comcast here, review the technical implementation details on the AMD Developer Blog here, and access the full research paper on arXiv here. February 17, 2026 Mohamed Abdel-Kareem2026-02-17T08:55:52-08:00 Leave A Comment Cancel replyComment Type in the text displayed above Δ This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.