Irish startup Equal1 has unveiled the world’s first quantum computer that runs on a hybrid quantum-classical silicon chip.
Dubbed Bell-1 — after quantum physicist John Stewart Bell — the computer weighs around 200kg and plugs into a regular electrical socket. The rack-mountable machine is designed to simply slot into high-performance computing (HPC) data centres alongside standard servers.
Equal1’s CEO Jason Lynch told TNW that combining quantum technology with today’s most advanced classical processors offers the fastest route to a quantum computer capable of potentially world-changing calculations.
The potential applications are endless. Quantum computers have the potential to solve complex problems that classical computers cannot, which could lead to breakthroughs in drug discovery, cryptography, modelling, and AI.
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“We’re leveraging established semiconductor technologies to scale up faster than the competition,” said Lynch. “This is the best way to scale quantum computing at the pace required.”
Equal1 marries classical transistors (for normal computing tasks) and quantum transistors (for qubits) in a single silicon-based chip. Qubits, akin to bits in a regular PC, are the basic units of information in a quantum computer. The more you have, the faster the machine.
Most quantum computing technologies are based on either trapped-ion or superconducting qubits. However, Equal1’s design uses silicon-spin qubits.
Bell-1 is noticeably smaller than most quantum computers out there. The company credits this to its closed cycle cryo-cooler that allows the machine to operate at 0.3 Kelvin (-272.85°C) without requiring massive external dilution refrigerators.
Most quantum computers need to be kept super cool because heat causes errors by disrupting the delicate quantum states of qubits (there are exceptions, however).
For now, Bell-1 is limited to just 6 qubits, which means it’s not yet capable of solving real-world problems. For comparison, Google’s recently unveiled Willow chip has 105 qubits. However, Google’s machine isn’t available to buy — Bell-1 is.
“Tech companies are recruiting more and more quantum experts now as they explore the future possibilities of this technology,” said Lynch. “Bell-1 will help them, and others, run experiments like quantum phase estimation and error correction that will form the foundation for more powerful processors in the future.”
Equal1’s quantum journey
Equal1 was founded in 2018 as a spin-off from University College Dublin. The startup currently employs about 45 people and, while still based in the Irish capital, has an expanding presence in the Netherlands — one of the world leaders in quantum technology.
The Netherlands Organisation for Applied Scientific Research (TNO) recently backed Equal1 with an undisclosed investment. Last year, the Irish company opened a research facility close to TU/Delft, an emerging hub for quantum tech startups such as QuantWare.
By leveraging standard semiconductor manufacturing, Equal1 aims to bring quantum computing closer to real-world applications faster than its competitors. That competition pool is growing, though, and fast. In the past few months alone, Google launched quantum chip Willow, Microsoft unveiled Majorana, and Amazon revealed Ocelot.
Quantum computing is on the new agenda for TNW Conference, which takes place on June 19-20 in Amsterdam. To get 30% off your ticket, use the code TNWXMEDIA2025 at the check-out.