Sycamore Circuit Simulation Achieves 0.549 XEB Score, Surpassing Google’s 0.002 Using Hybrid CPU/GPU HPC
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The pursuit of demonstrating a clear advantage for quantum computers over their classical counterparts continues to drive innovation in the field, and recent work by Bob Wold and Venkateswaran Kasirajan, both from Quantum Rings Inc., challenges existing benchmarks for ‘quantum supremacy’. The researchers developed a new framework that effectively simulates complex quantum circuits using a combination of readily available high-performance computing resources, specifically NVIDIA GPUs and standard CPUs. By simulating the 53-qubit Sycamore circuit, they achieve a significantly improved cross-entropy benchmark score and, crucially, demonstrate a substantial speedup, over 69 million times faster, compared to Google’s original classical estimate for the same computation. This achievement suggests that the threshold for demonstrating quantum supremacy remains dynamic and that hybrid classical-quantum approaches may offer greater near-term potential than previously considered.
Sycamore Circuit Simulation Exceeds Quantum Supremacy Benchmark Scientists have developed a new method for simulating quantum circuits that rivals the performance of quantum hardware, challenging the traditional understanding of quantum supremacy.
The team successfully simulated a 53-qubit circuit, achieving a linear cross-entropy benchmark score that significantly exceeds the previously reported score from the original quantum hardware experiment. This achievement demonstrates a marked improvement in classical simulation capabilities and provides a direct comparison against a leading quantum processor. The simulation of a more complex circuit, with 20 cycles, completed in just over an hour using 100 CPU jobs, representing a substantial speedup compared to earlier classical estimates. The methodology involves a pipeline leveraging a single NVIDIA A100 GPU for initial quantum state construction, followed by distributed measurement sampling across multiple CPU cores. The generated quantum state is stored on a shared file system for rapid access by the sampling jobs. This combination of GPU acceleration and CPU parallelism enables efficient simulation of complex quantum circuits, pushing the boundaries of classical computation and offering a viable alternative to quantum hardware for certain tasks. These results suggest that the threshold for achieving quantum supremacy is not static and continues to evolve with advancements in classical algorithms and high-performance computing infrastructure.
Classical Simulation Rivals Quantum Hardware This research demonstrates a significant advancement in the simulation of complex quantum circuits using readily available high-performance computing infrastructure. By combining a single NVIDIA A100 GPU with parallel CPU processing, the team successfully simulated a 53-qubit circuit, achieving a linear cross-entropy benchmark score exceeding that previously reported for the original quantum hardware experiment. Furthermore, the simulation of a more complex circuit, with 20 cycles, completed in just over an hour using 100 CPU jobs, representing a substantial speedup compared to earlier classical estimates. These findings challenge the conventional understanding of ‘quantum supremacy’ by illustrating that the boundary between classical and quantum capabilities is not fixed, but rather a moving target influenced by ongoing advancements in classical computing techniques.
The team estimates that with increased CPU resources, simulation times could approach those of the original quantum experiment, highlighting the continued relevance and competitiveness of classical simulation in the near term. This work suggests that hybrid classical-quantum strategies may offer practical benefits in the near term, even before the widespread availability of fault-tolerant quantum computers. The authors acknowledge that the efficiency of their pipeline is dependent on factors such as state construction, input/output handling, and job scheduling, and suggest these areas as potential avenues for future improvement. They have made their complete source code publicly available to promote reproducibility and further research in this rapidly evolving field. 👉 More information 🗞 Revisiting Quantum Supremacy: Simulating Sycamore-Class Circuits Using Hybrid CPU/GPU HPC Workloads 🧠 ArXiv: https://arxiv.org/abs/2512.07311 Tags: Rohail T. As a quantum scientist exploring the frontiers of physics and technology. My work focuses on uncovering how quantum mechanics, computing, and emerging technologies are transforming our understanding of reality. I share research-driven insights that make complex ideas in quantum science clear, engaging, and relevant to the modern world. Latest Posts by Rohail T.: Quantum Weak Measurement Enables Fault-Tolerant Information Processing with Minimal Distortion December 10, 2025 Quantum Computing and Statistical Thermodynamics Achieve 0.76 Accuracy in Accelerated Drug Discovery with 20-fold Efficiency December 10, 2025 Rydberg Atom Array Achieves 13% Standard Limit in Quantum-Limited Microwave Electrometry December 10, 2025