Fujitsu and Riken said Tuesday that they have developed a world-leading 256-qubit superconducting quantum computer with four times the computing power of its predecessor.
The new computer will be available for use by research institutes and companies by June.
Quantum computers are said to have more computing power than supercomputers, but require tens of thousands to 1 million qubits per unit to prevent computing errors.
Competition is intensifying in Japan and abroad for making quantum computers smaller and improving error detection methods.
The newly developed quantum computer cools integrated circuits made of superconducting materials to almost absolute zero, and the machine is designed to efficiently release internal heat.
The predecessor, whose development was announced in 2023, had 64 qubits.
Fujitsu, a Japanese technology company, and Riken, a government-backed research institute in the country, said they plan to develop a 1,000-qubit superconducting quantum computer in fiscal 2026, which starts in April next year.
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