At AWS re:Invent, Amazon Web Services, Inc. (AWS) announced three initiatives as a part of the company’s plans to help advance quantum computing technologies.

• Amazon Braket (in preview today) is a new, fully managed AWS service that enables scientists, researchers, and developers to begin experimenting with computers from quantum hardware providers (including D-Wave, IonQ, and Rigetti) in a single place.
• AWS Center for Quantum Computing will bring together quantum computing experts from Amazon, the California Institute of Technology (Caltech), and other top academic research institutions to collaborate on the research and development of new quantum computing technologies.
• Amazon Quantum Solutions Lab is a program that connects Amazon's customers with quantum computing experts from Amazon and its technology and consulting partners to develop internal expertise aimed at identifying practical uses of quantum computing, and accelerating the development of quantum applications with meaningful impact.

Quantum computing has the potential to solve computational problems that are beyond the reach of classical computers. It promises to transform areas such as energy storage, chemical engineering, material science, drug discovery, process optimization, and machine learning. However, the application of quantum computing to date has been limited mainly to proof of concept studies with limited practical use. To help accelerate the development of this technology, AWS is establishing the AWS Center for Quantum Computing, where quantum experts from Amazon and academia will collaborate on the research and development of new quantum computing technologies and applications with the goal of solving real-world problems. AWS is launching the Amazon Braket service and the Amazon Quantum Solutions Lab so that its customers can begin learning and experimenting with quantum computing today.

Amazon Braket is a fully managed service that makes it possible for Amazon's customers to get started on quantum computing by providing a single development environment to build quantum algorithms, test them on simulated quantum computers, and try them on a range of different quantum hardware architectures. Customers can get started quickly using familiar tools like Jupyter notebooks, and providing the same, consistent AWS experience they know today, without having to engage multiple vendors or risk being locked into a single technology. Amazon Braket can be used by organizations just beginning to explore the possibilities of quantum computing, as well as by those that are already familiar with the technology and are ready to use it as a research tool. With Amazon Braket, customers can assess the present and future capabilities of a variety of different quantum technologies that initially include quantum annealing from D-Wave, ion trap devices from IonQ, and superconducting chips from Rigetti, with more to be added in the coming months. Independent of their chosen quantum technologies, customers and partners can design quantum algorithms using the Amazon Braket developer toolkit.

The AWS Center for Quantum Computing is being established at Caltech, a pioneer in the fields of quantum computation and quantum information. The AWS Center for Quantum Computing will bring together researchers and engineers from Amazon with academic institutions in quantum computing, to develop more powerful quantum computing hardware and identify novel quantum applications with the goal of boosting innovation in science and industry.

The Amazon Quantum Solutions Lab connects Amazon's customers with quantum computing experts from Amazon and its technology and consulting partners to help discover new applications and find ways to apply quantum computing inside their organizations. As the technology eventually reaches the point of commercial viability, AWS and its partners will collaborate on experiments with customers and guide them to incorporate quantum solutions into their business. Lab programs will combine hands-on educational workshops with brainstorming sessions to help customers “work backwards” from business challenges, and then go step-by-step through the process of using quantum computers effectively. Amazon Partner Network (APN) partners participating in the Amazon Quantum Solutions Lab include: 1Qbit, Rahko, Rigetti, QCWare, QSimulate, Xanadu, and Zapata.