Qedma, a company that builds tools to make quantum computers more reliable, announced on Thursday that it has raised $26 million in Series A funding.
Glilot Capital Partners led the funding round through its growth fund, Glilot+. New investors like IBM and Korean Investment Partners joined in, along with existing backers such as TPY Capital. Qedma’s software helps solve a big problem in quantum computing — reducing the number of errors these systems make.
Quantum computers are highly sensitive to errors caused by tiny changes in their environment, often referred to as “noise.” Unlike regular computer bits that are either 0 or 1, quantum bits (called qubits) can be in a mix of both at the same time. This makes them powerful but also fragile.
To keep qubits stable, scientists use error correction techniques. But these methods are expensive and complex. Right now, it can take up to 1,000 real (physical) qubits just to safely store one working (logical) qubit.
Qedma’s founders say their solution can greatly reduce the need for heavy error correction. Their software studies the specific “noise” pattern of each quantum device and then adjusts how the computer runs its tasks. It works by preventing some errors in advance and fixing others afterwards. According to the company, this approach could allow quantum computers to handle tasks up to 1,000 times bigger than what current hardware can manage on its own.
The idea for Qedma began in 2020 during a chance lunch between Prof. Netanel Lindner, a quantum physics expert at the Technion, and Dr. Asif Sinay, a physicist who had moved into the tech world. Lindner shared his belief that understanding the unique noise in each quantum device could be the key to solving major problems.
Around the same time, Prof. Dorit Aharonov — a leader in quantum error correction theory — had a similar idea and discussed it with Sinay. The three began meeting weekly, and their talks eventually led to the creation of Qedma. The company now aims to build the “operating layer” that quantum hardware needs to truly work well.
“In every algorithm, there are lines of code where each operation has a reliability of 99%, which creates a problem because the result may be incorrect,” Sinay told Calcalist. “When you connect a large number of arithmetic operations, hundreds of thousands of logical operations, the chance of errors becomes very high due to the nature of quantum computers. Unlike classical computing, you cannot simply stop and correct mid-process. We have developed a method to reduce these errors and perform calculations that classical computing cannot handle. We know how to run algorithms with 99% accuracy. This is the critical part of quantum computing: without an operating layer that corrects errors, we’re just selling white elephants. We have about 40 employees who focus on the software layer and on removing errors, because without that, you can’t run any computing at scale.”
He added, “We have a product and we’ve integrated with IBM’s quantum computers. Every customer who accesses IBM’s hardware can also access our software, and we’re integrating with other hardware companies in our field,” Sinay said. “The entire industry knows that without error correction, quantum computing is useless. Qubits must be as noise-free as possible. In this round, IBM is investing for the first time in a company that’s building what’s closest to an operating system for quantum computing. IBM did the most rigorous due diligence on us and told us it believes in us, investing millions of dollars, not only for a stake in the company, but also to help advance it.”
“Lior Litwak from the Glilot fund, who was in my Talpiot class, decided we were the best investment in quantum computing. We also wanted an East Asian partner, which is why we brought in the Korean fund. Every country today must have quantum computing capability,” Sinay said.
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