But the uncertainty and the dismal stock performance of publicly-listed quantum computer companies including Rigetti Computing Inc have not scared investors away. Some are turning to startups who are pivoting to using powerful chips to run quantum-inspired software on regular computers as they bide their time.
QC Ware, a software startup that has raised more than $33 million and initially focused only on software that could run on quantum computers, said it needed to change tack and find a solution for clients today until the future quantum machines arrive. This week, QC Ware is unveiling a quantum-inspired software platform called Promethium that will simulate chemical molecules - to see how they interact with things like protein - on a traditional computer using GPUs.
In the past 18 months, quantum software startups including SandBoxAQ - an Alphabet spinoff - raised about $1 billion, according to data firm PitchBook. To be sure, development of this technology is nascent and these startups must work hard to convince some prospective clients. Jason Turner, who founded Entanglement Inc in 2017 to be a"quantum only lab," became impatient with the slow pace of quantum hardware development.