Microsoft unveils Pentagon-backed quantum processor

The company has touted Majorana 1 as a technological breakthrough, with the research attracting attention from the US government.

Microsoft has unveiled its new Majorana 1 stable quantum processor, touting it as a major step toward practical quantum computing. The Pentagon’s Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) has included the research in one of its programs, the company added.

In a statement on Wednesday, Microsoft said that the new chip is powered by the world’s first topoconductor, which is capable of creating an entirely new state of matter with extremely high conductivity features, making computation much more stable.

One of the main problems with quantum computing has been the
extreme fragility of quantum bits, which are incredibly susceptible to all kinds of external interference, requiring robust and extremely sophisticated error correction techniques. According to Microsoft, however, Majorana 1 relies on topological qubits, which are designed to be inherently error-resistant.

The company said its new processor “marks a transformative leap toward practical quantum computing,” which could lead to “innovations like self-healing materials that repair cracks in bridges, sustainable agriculture, and safer chemical discovery,” saving time and money on extensive scientific research.

The Pentagon’s DARPA, which specializes in developing advanced technologies for military use, included Microsoft and PsiQuantum, another computing company, in the final phase of its Underexplored Systems for Utility-Scale Quantum Computing (US2QC) program. Microsoft said it views DARPA’s move “as validation of our roadmap for building a fault-tolerant quantum computer.”

DARPA stated its interest in the research in early February, saying its experts “have exhaustively examined” the companies’ technical
approaches and their long-term R&D plans. The agency, however, would not say whether the US government has invested or plans to financially support the two companies’ research.

Microsoft has a well-established relationship with the US military, mostly in the areas of cloud services and research and development.

In 2022, the Pentagon split $9 billion worth of cloud computing contracts among four US tech giants, including Microsoft. In 2018, Microsoft secured a contract to develop the Integrated Visual Augmentation System (IVAS) for the US Army.

The project aimed to equip soldiers with augmented reality headsets to improve combat effectiveness, although it has been repeatedly criticized for technological flaws. Earlier this month, Microsoft partnered with defense contractor Anduril Industries to continue the development of IVAS.

Image credit: Salvatore De Lellis