Real-world use cases
Accelerating the schedule for quantum-enhanced rail
Accelerate the usefulness of quantum computing for rail scheduling through custom solution development and performance optimization utilizing Fire Opal.
6X
increase in solvable problem size and accelerated timeline to practical quantum advantage by up to 3 years, now estimated for 2028.
We were pleasantly surprised to see the optimal routing of 26 trains over 18 minutes of real scheduling data for the full station topology being realised on a real quantum device, which otherwise wouldn’t have been possible without using Q-CTRL’s optimisation solver.

Delivering quantum advantage to airborne systems
Q-CTRL’s Ironstone Opal delivers GPS-free quantum navigation, achieving 94X better performance than INS in real-world flight and ground vehicle trials.
94X
improvement over the performance of a strategic-grade inertial navigation system in real flight tests
We achieved an accuracy in some trials comparable to a sharpshooter hitting a bullseye from 1,000 yards away. But because our quantum-assured navigation system allows a vehicle to position itself accurately irrespective of how far it’s travelled, by analogy that sharpshooter can hit the same bullseye no matter how far away they move from the target.

Improving quantum education outcomes with Black Opal at the University of Hull, UK
Enhancing student engagement and real-world understanding in quantum computing through intuitive and interactive learning with Black Opal.
85%
of students reported that Black Opal improved their overall learning outcomes when used alongside their university syllabus, and would recommend its use in future courses.
Students who engaged with Black Opal as an active companion resource significantly boosted knowledge retention and ultimately understanding. Some of them even engaged further with quantum computing by choosing a final-year project in that field.
Improving Army logistics with quantum computing
With Fire Opal, the Australian Army tested and validated a quantum computing solution on real hardware that promises to outperform their existing methods.
12X
improvement in the likelihood of finding an optimal solution with Fire Opal over the default hardware execution
Optimally routing 120 convoys can take more than a month of classical computation. The Australian Army is evaluating the potential of quantum computing to provide improvements; however, it’s been difficult to validate the feasibility of a quantum solution due to hardware noise. With Fire Opal, an algorithmic enhancement software, we are able to achieve results on quantum computers that build confidence in our quantum roadmap.
