Beautiful Virgin Islands

Friday, Sep 05, 2025

Ministry of Defence acquires government's first quantum computer

Ministry of Defence acquires government's first quantum computer

The Ministry of Defence (MoD) has acquired the government's first quantum computer.

Quantum computers can make very complex calculations extremely quickly and their creators say they can solve the problems regular computers cannot.

The MoD will work with British company Orca Computing to explore applications for quantum technology in defence.

Stephen Till, of the MoD's Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (DSTL), called it a "milestone moment".

The computers found in most of our homes and workplaces process data in bits, which have a binary value of either zero or one.

Quantum computers instead use a two-state unit for data processing called a qubit.

This can represent digits like one or zero simultaneously through a quantum mechanical process called superposition, letting quantum computers bridge binary digits and cope with uncertainty where regular computers cannot.

Quantum computing experts and physicists say this means that the problems combed over by average computers for years could be solved in a matter of minutes.


Promise v reality


Prof Winfried Hensinger, head of the Sussex Centre for Quantum Technologies at University of Sussex, says the true potential of quantum computers will take time to fully materialise.

"They can't actually solve any practical problems yet. They're enabling you to maybe gauge the possibilities of what working on a quantum computer would have if you can scale this machine to really large system sizes."

But he adds the promise of quantum computing, and the MoD's exploration of it, is still significant.

"Quantum computing can be disruptive in nearly any industry sector," Prof Hensinger adds.

"You can imagine that within defence, there's a lot of problems where optimisation can play a huge and very important role."


Try explaining the ins and outs of quantum computing at a party and you may not hold your friends' attention for very long.

It is a very complex concept, and works in a completely different way to your laptop, or the phone in your pocket - or even the giant supercomputers that can process mind-boggling amounts of data in a nanosecond.

The promise of quantum computing is that it will help to solve problems that standard computers can't handle.

The idea is that it will be used in the fight against climate change, in the development of new drugs and improved artificial intelligence - and in this case, potentially to support the military.

Just like the early days of standard computers though, we are at the stage where these machines are very few and very cumbersome, not least because their building blocks, qubits, have to be kept frozen.

But Orca's machine does not require this, meaning the device can be a lot smaller, and a little bit more practical.


A vote of confidence


Richard Murray, chief executive of Orca Computing, says despite debate over the realities and capabilities of quantum computing, the company's work with the MoD is a "significant vote of confidence".

"Our partnership with MoD gives us the type of hands-on close interaction, working with real hardware which will help us to jointly discover new applications of this revolutionary new technology."

Orca's PT-1 quantum computer


The MoD will work with Orca's small PT-1 quantum computer, which the company says is the first of its kind to be able to operate at room temperature, rather than require sub-zero surroundings to keep heat-sensitive qubits cool.

Orca's system uses photons, or single units of light, to optimise machine learning tasks like image analysis and decision-making.

Mr Till says having access to Orca's quantum computer will accelerate the MoD's understanding of the technology.

"We expect the Orca system to provide significantly improved latency - the speed at which we can read and write to the quantum computer," he says.


Watch: What is quantum computing?


Newsletter

Related Articles

Beautiful Virgin Islands
0:00
0:00
Close
Putin Celebrates ‘Unprecedentedly High’ Ties with China as Gazprom Seals Power of Siberia-2 Deal
China Unveils New Weapons in Grand Military Parade as Xi Hosts Putin and Kim
Queen Camilla’s Teenage Courage: Fended Off Attempted Assault on London Train, New Biography Reveals
Scottish Brothers Set Record in Historic Pacific Row
Rapper Cardi B Cleared of Liability in Los Angeles Civil Assault Trial
Google Avoids Break-Up in U.S. Antitrust Case as Stocks Rise
Couple celebrates 80th wedding anniversary at assisted living facility in Lancaster
Information Warfare in the Age of AI: How Language Models Become Targets and Tools
The White House on LinkedIn Has Changed Their Profile Picture to Donald Trump
"Insulted the Prophet Muhammad": Woman Burned Alive by Angry Mob in Niger State, Nigeria
Trump Responds to Death Rumors – Announces 'Missile City'
Court of Appeal Allows Asylum Seekers to Remain at Essex Hotel Amid Local Tax Boycott Threats
Germany in Turmoil: Ukrainian Teenage Girl Pushed to Death by Illegal Iraqi Migrant
United Krack down on human rights: Graham Linehan Arrested at Heathrow Over Three X Posts, Hospitalised, Released on Bail with Posting Ban
Asian and Middle Eastern Investors Avoid US Markets
Ray Dalio Warns of US Shift to Autocracy
Eurozone Inflation Rises to 2.1% in August
Russia and China Sign New Gas Pipeline Deal
China's Robotics Industry Fuels Export Surge
Suntory Chairman Resigns After Police Probe
Gold Price Hits New All-Time Record
Von der Leyen's Plane Hit by Suspected Russian GPS Interference in an Incident Believed to Be Caused by Russia or by Pro-Peace or by Anti-Corruption European Activists
UK Fintechs Explore Buying US Banks
Greece Suspends 5% of Schools as Birth Rate Drops
Apollo to Launch $5 Billion Sports Investment Vehicle
Bolsonaro Trial Nears Close Amid US-Brazil Tension
European Banks Push for Lower Cross-Border Barriers
Poland's Offshore Wind Sector Attracts Investors
Nvidia Reveals: Two Mystery Customers Account for About 40% of Revenue
Woody Allen: "I Would Be Happy to Direct Trump Again in a Film"
Pickles are the latest craze among Generation Z in the United States.
Deadline Day Delivers Record £125m Isak Move and Donnarumma to City
Nestlé Removes CEO Laurent Freixe Following Undisclosed Relationship with Subordinate
Giuliani Seriously Injured in Accident – Trump to Award Him the Presidential Medal of Freedom
EU is getting aggressive: Four AfD Candidates Die Unexpectedly Ahead of North Rhine-Westphalia Local Elections
Lula and Putin Hold Strategic BRICS Discussions Ahead of Trump–Putin Summit
WhatsApp is rolling out a feature that looks a lot like Telegram.
Investigations Reveal Rise in ‘Sex-for-Rent’ Listings Across Canada Exploiting Vulnerable Tenants
Chinese and Indian Leaders Pursue Amity Amid Global Shifts
European Union Plans for Ukraine Deployment
ECB Warns Against Inflation Complacency
Concerns Over North Cyprus Casino Development
Shipping Companies Look Beyond Chinese Finance
Rural Exodus Fueling European Wildfires
China Hosts Major Security Meeting
Chinese Police Successfully Recover Family's Savings from Livestream Purchases
Germany Marks a Decade Since Migrant Wave with Divisions, Success Stories, and Political Shifts
Liverpool Defeat Arsenal 1–0 with Szoboszlai Free-Kick to Stay Top of Premier League
Prince Harry and King Charles to Meet in First Reunion After 20 Months
Chinese Stock Market Rally Fueled by Domestic Investors
×