D-Wave Systems launches Leap 2 cloud service for hybrid quantum applications

D-Wave Systems is unveiling its Leap 2 quantum cloud computing service. (D-Wave Graphic) What comes after a quantum leap? For Burnaby, B.C.-based D-Wave Systems , it’s Leap 2, the latest iteration of its cloud-based quantum computing service.

Leap 2 builds on 18 months’ worth of experience with D-Wave’s Leap service, built on the foundation of the company’s 2000Q quantum annealing computer . The upgraded service has a hybrid solver that lets users take on complex problems with up to 10,000 variables, using a blend of quantum and classical cloud resources, plus a problem inspector that lets developers use visual tools to map their problems onto the quantum processing unit.
There’s an expanded Quantum Application Environment and an Integrated Developer Environment with a prebuilt, configured Ocean SDK for quantum hybrid Python development. Leap 2 is also designed to play well with D-Wave’s next-generation, 5,000-qubit Advantage computing system , due for release later this year.
The quantum cloud upgrade is aimed at keeping pace with similar services such as Microsoft’s Azure Quantum service and Amazon Web Services’ Amazon Braket platform (which has D-Wave as a partner). D-Wave will delve more deeply into Leap 2’s new features during a “sneak preview” webinar scheduled for 10 a.m. PT Thursday .