Startup Raises $1.1M to Put Quantum Computers in Space

An Italian deep-tech startup plans to develop a quantum computer sturdy enough to operate in inhospitable conditions, including in space.

Rotonium, based at the Le Village incubator in Padua, has raised $1.1 million in venture capital funding toward achieving its goal. The round was funded by Obloo Ventures and Galaxia, the National Technology Transfer Hub for Aerospace, created by CDP Venture Capital’s tech transfer fund.

The company plans to advance its industrial research into developing a novel single-photon qubit quantum processing unit (QPU) that could be miniaturized.

This decentralized, or edge, paradigm would enable a quantum computer using the single-proton QPU to operate at room temperature or even in flight or space without needing bulky refrigeration equipment.

Rotonium intends to use the funds to develop further photonic components to verify the performance of this new architecture and design a potential commercial quantum processor. Its initial steps will be to carry out integration tests of the components and recruit more personnel.

“After two years during which we have laid the foundations of a new photonic quantum computing architecture, this investment round will make it possible for us to accelerate the development of a silicon photonics chip proving the potential of our innovative technology,” said Rotonium CEO Roberto Siagri, who co-founded the company with chief quantum officer Fabrizio Tamburini.

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According to the head of CDP Venture Capital’s Tech Transfer Fund Claudia Pingue, Rotonium’s research could mark a step toward the era of quantum utility and the widespread use of quantum computers.

“The original solution proposed by the company enables the use of unprecedented computing capabilities at the edge, directly in orbit, taking advantage of the possibility of using photons in a more robust configuration compared to competing technologies, without the need for complex and voluminous installations and with energy requirements that are compatible with those available in orbit,” Pingue said.