IBM goes all-in on quantum chips - new Nighthawk and Loon hardware look to bring the dream to life at last

• IBM introduced two new quantum chips in latest step forward
• The Nighthawk chip increases circuit complexity by 30% over its predecessor
• Loon is IBM’s first chip to demonstrate full fault-tolerant components

IBM has announced two new quantum chips as part of its wider roadmap to achieve both quantum advantage and fault-tolerant computing by the end of the decade.

The company says the new Nighthawk and Loon chips mark a major leap toward making practical quantum computing a reality.

The new hardware, launched alongside advances in fabrication and software, aims to bridge the gap between experimental prototypes and commercially useful quantum systems.

Building the foundation for quantum advantage

The Nighthawk chip is designed to reach what IBM calls “quantum advantage,” the point at which a quantum computer can outperform all classical computing methods.

With 120 qubits and 218 tunable couplers arranged in a square lattice, the chip supports circuits with 30% greater complexity than its predecessor while keeping error rates low.

IBM expects the processor to handle up to 5,000 two-qubit gates initially, with future iterations scaling to 15,000 by 2028.

This performance could complement high-end mobile workstations used for AI development and scientific modeling.

The Loon chip, meanwhile, takes a more experimental path, demonstrating all key hardware elements needed for fault-tolerant quantum computing for the first time.

By linking qubits both horizontally and vertically, Loon explores new architectures for more efficient quantum error correction.

IBM claims this marks the first demonstration of all critical processor components required for large-scale fault tolerance.

“There are many pillars to bringing truly useful quantum computing to the world,” said Jay Gambetta, Director of IBM Research and IBM Fellow.

“We believe that IBM is the only company that is positioned to rapidly invent and scale quantum software, hardware, fabrication, and error correction to unlock transformative applications.”

To support these goals, IBM has shifted production of its quantum processors to a 300mm wafer fabrication facility at the Albany NanoTech Complex in New York.

This change doubles the company’s development speed, allowing multiple chip designs to be tested simultaneously and increasing the physical complexity of quantum chips tenfold.

Such improvements suggest that IBM aims to treat quantum processor production with the same rigor applied to modern mini PC and business laptop manufacturing.

Using its updated Qiskit tools, IBM improves quantum circuit accuracy by 24% and reduces computation costs more than a hundredfold through HPC-assisted error mitigation.

IBM is also collaborating with firms such as Algorithmiq, BlueQubit, and the Flatiron Institute to support community-led efforts that track and verify “quantum advantage.”

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