Quandela and Mila join forces to develop hybrid artificial intelligence and quantum computing technologies. [French version below]

Montreal, Quebec and Paris, France – July 8, 2025 – Quandela, a European leader in photonic quantum computing, and Mila, the Quebec Artificial Intelligence Institute, announce a partnership to explore the potential of hybrid technologies combining machine learning and quantum computing.  

This strategic collaboration will focus on the development and evaluation of innovative quantum machine learning (QML) models, positioning both organizations at the forefront of this new technological frontier.  

“This partnership with Mila represents a crucial step in our mission to explore concrete applications of quantum computing in the field of artificial intelligence,” says Valérian Giesz, co-founder and COO of Quandela. “By combining our expertise in photonic quantum computing with Mila’s excellence in artificial intelligence, we are confident we can accelerate the development of solutions that will transform many sectors.”   

“The intersection of artificial intelligence and quantum computing represents a field with great potential,” said Guillaume Rabusseau, Core Academic Member at Mila and Assistant Professor at the Université de Montréal. “Our collaboration with Quandela is an opportunity to explore how quantum approaches can enrich and potentially revolutionize current machine learning paradigms.” 

Key objectives of the partnership

The collaboration between Quandela and Mila will focus on four main areas: 

1.Benchmarking: Comparing the performance of quantum machine learning (QML) models on structured data against classical approaches.

2.Identifying quantum advantages: Determining under which conditions quantum methods can offer significant advantages in terms of accuracy, resource utilization and scalability. 

3.Solving training challenges: Develop innovative solutions to overcome known challenges in training quantum models. 

4.Experimental validation: Integrating both simulation-based studies and experiments on real quantum hardware to assess the potential of QML in real-world applications.  

A stronger foothold in Canada

This partnership with Mila marks another step in Quandela’s expansion in Canada, following the recent installation of a quantum computer in Sherbrooke. This growing presence underscores Quandela’s commitment to actively contribute to the development of the Canadian quantum ecosystem, recognized worldwide for its excellence.  

“The implementation of our quantum technology in Sherbrooke, followed by this partnership with Mila, illustrates our long-term vision for Canada,” emphasizes Valérian Giesz. “We are impressed by the vitality of the Canadian innovation ecosystem and determined to play a significant role in it.”    
 
About Mila

Founded by Professor Yoshua Bengio of the University of Montreal, Mila is the world’s largest academic research center for deep learning, bringing together over 1,300 specialized researchers in machine learning. Based in Montreal and funded in part by the Government of Canada through the Pan-Canadian AI Strategy, Mila’s mission is to be a global center for scientific advancements that inspire innovation and the growth of AI for the benefit of all. Mila is a globally recognized non-profit organization for its significant contributions to deep learning, especially in the fields of language modeling, automatic translation, object recognition, and generative models. For more information, visit mila.quebec.    

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Quandela et Mila s’associent pour développer des technologies hybrides combinant intelligence artificielle et informatique quantique 

Montréal, Québec et Paris, France – 8 juillet 2025 – Quandela, leader européen de l’informatique quantique photonique, et Mila, l’Institut québécois d’intelligence artificielle, annoncent un partenariat visant à explorer le potentiel des technologies hybrides combinant l’apprentissage automatique et l’informatique quantique.  

Cette collaboration stratégique se concentrera sur le développement et l’évaluation de modèles d’apprentissage automatique quantique (QML) innovants, positionnant les deux organisations à l’avant-garde de cette nouvelle frontière technologique.  

« Ce partenariat avec Mila représente une étape cruciale dans notre mission d’explorer les applications concrètes de l’informatique quantique dans le domaine de l’intelligence artificielle», déclare Valérian Giesz, cofondateur et directeur des opérations de Quandela. « En combinant notre expertise en informatique quantique photonique avec l’excellence de Mila en intelligence artificielle, nous sommes convaincus de pouvoir accélérer le développement de solutions qui transformeront de nombreux secteurs. » 

« L’intersection de l’intelligence artificielle et de l’informatique quantique représente un domaine avec un très grand potentiel, » a affirmé Guillaume Rabusseau, Membre académique principal de Mila et Professeur adjoint à l’Université de Montréal. « Notre collaboration avec Quandela sera une occasion d’explorer comment les approches quantiques peuvent enrichir et potentiellement révolutionner les paradigmes actuels d’apprentissage automatique. »  

Objectifs clés du partenariat
La collaboration entre Quandela et Mila s’articulera autour de quatre axes principaux : 

1.Évaluation comparative : Comparer les performances des modèles d’apprentissage automatique quantique (QML) sur des données structurées par rapport aux approches classiques. 

2.Identification des avantages quantiques : Déterminer dans quelles conditions les méthodes quantiques peuvent offrir des avantages significatifs en termes de précision, d’utilisation des ressources et d’extensibilité. 

3.Résolution des défis d’entraînement: Développer des solutions innovantes pour surmonter les défis connus liés à l’entraînement de modèles quantiques. 

4.Validation expérimentale : Intégrer à la fois des études basées sur des simulations et des expériences sur du matériel quantique réel pour évaluer le potentiel du QML dans des applications concrètes.  

Un ancrage renforcé au Canada

Ce partenariat avec Mila marque une nouvelle étape dans l’expansion de Quandela au Canada, après l’installation récente d’un ordinateur quantique à Sherbrooke. Cette présence croissante témoigne de l’engagement de Quandela à contribuer activement au développement de l’écosystème quantique canadien, reconnu mondialement pour son excellence.  « L’installation de notre technologie quantique à Sherbrooke, suivie de ce partenariat avec Mila, illustre notre vision à long terme pour le Canada », souligne Valérian Giesz. « Nous sommes impressionnés par la vitalité de l’écosystème d’innovation canadien et déterminés à y jouer un rôle significatif.»   

À propos de Mila

Fondé par le professeur Yoshua Bengio de l’Université de Montréal, Mila est le plus grand centre de recherche universitaire en apprentissage profond au monde, rassemblant plus de 1 300 chercheur·euse·s spécialisé·e·s dans le domaine de l’apprentissage automatique. Basé à Montréal et financé en partie par le gouvernement du Canada dans le cadre de la Stratégie pancanadienne en matière d’IA, Mila a pour mission d’être un pôle mondial d’avancées scientifiques qui inspire l’innovation et le développement de l’IA au bénéfice de tous·tes. Mila est une organisation à but non lucratif reconnue mondialement pour ses importantes contributions au domaine de l’apprentissage profond, en particulier dans les domaines de la modélisation du langage, de la traduction automatique, de la reconnaissance d’objets et des modèles génératifs. Pour en savoir plus, visitez mila.quebec. 

Paris – Saclay, June 17, 2025 

AdvanThink, Europe’s leading expert in real-time payment fraud detection, and Quandela, a leader in quantum computing, have established a strategic partnership aimed at transforming the future of payment fraud prevention.  

The Promise: By leveraging the complementary strengths of AI and quantum computing, the two companies aim to develop high-performance fraud detection models designed for real-world deployment. These systems will be capable of identifying payment fraud faster and with greater accuracy than existing solutions.

Detecting payment fraud in real time remains one of today’s most significant technological, operational, and strategic challenges. In response to constantly evolving fraud techniques, AdvanThink has spent 35 years building strategic tools powered by artificial intelligence that continuously learn and adapt to emerging threats. In this ongoing race to improve performance, artificial intelligence has become an essential tool, capable of detecting subtle warning signs across large volumes of data with unprecedented precision and speed. 

Future requirements will be even more demanding. Fraud detection models will need to be faster, more accurate, more energy-efficient, and more resilient against increasingly sophisticated attacks. It is within this context that AdvanThink and Quandela have joined forces to explore the potential of quantum computing and push the boundaries of state-of-the-art fraud detection. 

The first phase of this partnership will focus on developing a proof of concept that demonstrates the value of integrating quantum machine learning algorithms into AdvanThink’s industrial pipelines.

“For 35 years, AdvanThink has placed technological innovation at the heart of its development strategy. Quantum AI holds a significant promise when it comes to fraud detection. It serves as a powerful catalyst for innovation in building the secure payment solutions of tomorrow – and financial institutions need to begin acknowledging this transformation today. We have already successfully integrated Quandela’s technology into an AdvanThink pipeline, meeting all the requirements of an industrial-grade system ready for deployment. This first demonstrator holds great potential for experts in fraud detection,” says Brice Perdrix, CEO of AdvanThink.

“Quandela has already developed a quantum machine learning model that enhances credit risk assessment. The algorithm also shows strong potential in payment fraud detection. Quandela’s partnership with AdvanThink facilitates the integration of this model into an industrial workflow and enables benchmarking against the best products on the market,” adds Niccolo Somaschi, co-founder and CEO of Quandela.

Launching at GTC Paris, MerLin democratizes quantum machine learning by integrating with classical AI tools—backed by GPU-accelerated performance 

Paris, France – June 11^th – Today, Quandela announces MerLin, a groundbreaking quantum computing framework designed for and by AI data scientists. Set to debut at NVIDIA GTC Paris, MerLin redefines quantum machine learning (QML) with a GPU-first approach, enabling researchers to simulate and benchmark algorithms beyond the limits of today’s quantum hardware. 

Quantum Meets AI: A Collaborative Future 

MerLin positions itself as the “quantum layer for data scientists” – contrasting with other quantum machine learning tools that target quantum scientists. By abstracting quantum complexity into familiar workflows (e.g., PyTorch/scikit-learn integrations), MerLin empowers AI practitioners to prototype hybrid quantum-classical models in hours, not months. Early adopters – including teams from the Perceval Quest, and researchers from Mila, NYUAD’s QML Lab and Scaleway – are collaborating with us to leverage MerLin and bridge classical and quantum workflows. 

“Quantum shouldn’t demand a PhD to use,” said Niccolo Somaschi, co-founder & CEO of Quandela. “MerLin gives data scientists a GPU-accelerated gateway to quantum advantage while ensuring their work remains compatible with real hardware today—and tomorrow. By integrating benchmarks and noise-aware validation, we’re addressing a critical gap: the lack of reproducible metrics in hybrid algorithm research.” 

“Powerful simulation tools are essential to develop better algorithms and accelerate the path to broad quantum advantage”, said Sam Stanwyck, Group Product Manager for quantum computing at NVIDIA. “MerLin solves a critical ecosystem need by opening the door for the broader research community to develop with photonic quantum circuits.” 

Key Innovations 

1. GPU-Optimized Simulators: 

• Leveraging NVIDIA CUDA-Q, MerLin delivers high-performance simulation for photonic quantum circuits, enabling tests for hardware that doesn’t yet exist (e.g., 24+ qubit systems). 

2. Benchmark-Driven Progress: 

• MerLin establishes reproducible metrics for hybrid algorithms, addressing the “benchmarking gap” in QML research—where thousands of papers lack standardized comparisons. 

• Integrated with Quandela Cloud, it enables immediate validation of GPU-optimized algorithms on real photonic hardware, studying noise impact and scalability. 

• Targets pragmatic use cases like quantum-enhanced kNN, GANs, and variational algorithms—backed by hardware-aware compilation. 

3. Photonic-First, Future-Proof: 

• Designed for today’s photonic QPUs (e.g., Perceval-based systems) but architected to adapt to next-gen hardware. 

• Features like dynamic circuit recompilation ensure code scalability across hardware generations. 

Who Uses MerLin? 

• AI/ML Practitioners: Prototype quantum layers without rewriting classical pipelines. 

• Quantum Researchers: Access photonic-specific tools (e.g., boson sampling) with GPU-accelerated simulation. 

• Enterprises: Pilot hybrid quantum-AI workflows with clear ROI benchmarks. 

“MerLin allowed us to adapt existing algorithms to a photonic-native format within a short timeframe. The platform offered useful comparative insights that contributed to our ongoing research and publication efforts”, said Dr. Louis Chen, an early user, Research Associate at the Quantum Centre of Imperial College London (Imperial QuEST) and participant in the most recent Perceval Quest.

Availability & Strategic Vision 

MerLin will be freely accessible to accelerate adoption, with enterprise tiers for advanced features. The roadmap includes: 

• Q2 2025: Stable PyTorch/scikit-learn APIs. 

• 2026+: Support for 24+ qubit photonic systems. 

Learn More: merlinquantum.ai 

WITTENSTEIN and Quandela underscore European innovative strength

Two leading technology companies from Germany and France are joining forces to help shape Europe’s future in quantum computing: attocube systems GmbH, a company of the WITTENSTEIN group and specialist in nanotechnology, and Quandela, a pioneer in photonic quantum computer technology. The companies have been working together on the development of the European quantum computer Lucy. Representatives of the owners, Management Board and senior management of the WITTENSTEIN group took advantage of a visit to Paris to meet with the Quandela team and assess the status of the joint project.

Lucy is no ordinary computer. It is based on light particles – known as photons – and belongs to a new generation of quantum computers that are opening up completely new possibilities in areas such as artificial intelligence, cyber security, and materials research. The quantum computer was commissioned by the European High Performance Computing Joint Undertaking (EuroHPC JU) following a competitive tender process won by the Quandela-attocube consortium.

The collaboration between Quandela and attocube demonstrates how European companies can work together to achieve technological excellence. While Quandela is developing the photonic quantum platform, attocube is supplying high-precision cryogenic systems—technology that generates the extremely low temperatures required for quantum processes.

The visit to France focused on technical progress and system integration. The participants discussed how quantum and classical computers can be combined even more effectively in the future—for example, for hybrid applications in AI or complex simulations.

“Lucy is more than a technical project – she is a symbol of European innovation,” said Dr. Bertram Hoffmann, CEO of WITTENSTEIN SE. Niccolo Somaschi, co-founder and CEO of Quandela, added: “Lucy stands for technological excellence and for the common goal of making Europe a world leader in quantum computing.”

Lucy is scheduled to go into operation later this year. It will be based at the French supercomputer center CEA TGCC, where it will serve as the cornerstone of a sovereign European quantum ecosystem.

Paris, June 4^th – Quandela, a leader in quantum computing, and Alysophil, a company specializing in AI-assisted continuous flow chemistry, announce that TotalEnergies and MBDA have renewed their trust by extending their initial partnership. This new commitment will allow the four partners to continue working together on the contributions of quantum computing to the study of new materials. This partnership, initiated over a year ago, represents an important milestone in the practical application of quantum technologies to industrial challenges. 

Quantum computing reinforcing AI 

The project aims to enhance the design of new molecules by combining two breakthrough technologies: quantum computing and artificial intelligence. While AI has already proven its ability to accelerate the discovery of new materials, it now faces the limitations of classical computers, particularly when it comes to accurately simulating interactions at the electronic level. The quantum approach overcomes these limitations by leveraging the fundamental properties of quantum physics, allowing direct modeling of electron behavior within molecules. 

The goal of the project is to explore new frontiers for innovative materials, such as high-performance polymers meeting the needs of industries that require materials which are more energetic, more resistant, and lighter. Machine learning algorithms, optimized to run on quantum processors, will make it possible to explore a much wider solution space than traditional approaches. 

“This partnership, initiated with two cutting-edge players in the French DeepTech ecosystem, Alysophil and Quandela, and with an industrial leader such as TotalEnergies, is a true opportunity. It allows us to explore the potential of quantum computers combined with Artificial Intelligence and to draw insights to guide our research in the field, confirming our position as a leader in science and technological progress” says Denis Gardin, Director of Innovation at MBDA. 

“The project fits perfectly into our strategy of exploring the potential benefits of Quantum Computing for our digital activities. Assessing the impact of Quantum Computing on Machine Learning-based algorithms is at the heart of our focus, particularly in the field of advanced materials” states Jean-Patrick Mascomere, Head of Scientific Computing at TotalEnergies R&D. 

Complementary expertise to accelerate the development of new materials 

The partnership is an important step in the industrialization of quantum technologies, by bringing together complementary areas of expertise. Alysophil contributes its know-how in machine learning and quantum chemistry, developing specific algorithms that will be used for quantum chemistry computations in the next phase of the project. Quandela complements this approach with its expertise in quantum machine learning, providing access to its photonic quantum processors (QPUs) and simulators, thereby significantly accelerating the prediction of chemical properties of materials. For its part, MBDA brings concrete perspectives for applying these new technologies, especially by steering the research toward the development of advanced materials. 

“Our expertise in machine learning and quantum chemistry enables us to develop tailored algorithms for this ambitious project. This collaboration paves the way for a new approach to molecular design—faster and more accurate” explains Philippe Robin, President of Alysophil. 

“Our quantum computing capabilities, combined with our expertise in quantum machine learning, allow us to explore novel approaches to material optimization. This collaboration perfectly illustrates the potential of combining quantum technologies with artificial intelligence to tackle real-world industrial challenges” says Niccolo Somaschi, co-founder and CEO of Quandela. 

This hybrid approach, combining the power of AI with the unique capabilities of quantum computers, opens the door to a new generation of molecular design tools. By simulating the behavior of electrons within molecules using photonic qubits, researchers will be able to explore complex molecular configurations much more efficiently than with conventional methods. This acceleration promises to drastically reduce the time required to develop new materials, thus contributing to faster and more sustainable innovation across industries. 

Artistic view of molecules and their electronic orbitals 

• BTQ and Quandela MOU: BTQ Technologies and Quandela have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to jointly explore how photonic quantum computing can advance energy-efficient blockchain validation through BTQ’s Quantum Sampling Proof-of-Work (QSPoW) protocol.
• Future Proofing Bitcoin: QSPoW is a Bitcoin-inspired quantum-secure and energy-efficient alternative to traditional PoW mining, aimed at preserving the integrity of the world’s largest digital asset in the face of advancing quantum threats.
• Quantum Meets Blockchain: The collaboration focuses on leveraging Quandela’s real and simulated boson-sampling data to test QSPoW’s performance, with the goal of reducing the computational and energy demands of traditional Proof-of-Work systems.
• Path to Commercialization: If performance benchmarks are met, the companies will explore commercialization opportunities, including the potential integration of Quandela’s Belenos quantum processor into future quantum-secure blockchain systems.

VANCOUVER, BC, May 22, 2025 /CNW/ – BTQ Technologies Corp. (the “Company”) (CBOE CA: BTQ) (FSE: NG3) (OTCQX: BTQQF), a global quantum technology company focused on securing mission-critical networks, is pleased to announce the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Quandela SAS (“Quandela”), a pioneering French quantum computing company renowned for its NISQ-era photonic quantum computing platform.

This collaboration marks a strategic step forward in evaluating how emerging quantum technologies can enhance blockchain systems. The partnership will center on BTQ’s Quantum Sampling Proof-of-Work (QSPoW) protocol—a novel approach to blockchain validation that aims to significantly reduce energy usage while strengthening cryptographic security.

Under the MOU, BTQ and Quandela will jointly explore several strategic areas. These include investigating real-world use cases for Quandela’s photonic quantum computing platform, working together on the use of Quandela’s boson-sampling technology—both simulated and real—through its Perceval cloud platform, and analyzing how this data performs in BTQ’s Quantum Sampling Proof-of-Work (QSPoW) testnet. Based on the outcomes of this analysis, the two companies will also evaluate potential pathways for commercialization.

Proof-of-Work (PoW) systems—like those used by Bitcoin—rely on massive computing power to validate transactions. BTQ’s QSPoW replaces this with boson sampling, a quantum process where light particles (photons) pass through an optical network to generate hard-to-predict outcomes. These outcomes can serve as a quantum secure and energy-efficient alternative to traditional PoW, and because this problem is hard to solve on non-quantum computers, the protocol is resistant to power hungry ASIC devices. QSPoW also creates a path towards creating a quantum-safe store of value by incorporating properties of quantum mechanics into the PoW consensus algorithm, ensuring no quantum adversary will be able to control the network. This approach directly addresses the growing threat quantum technologies pose to digital assets like Bitcoin, a concern recently highlighted in BlackRock’s amendment to its risk disclosure in its S-1 filing.

While various actors in the Bitcoin community are taking steps to enable the uses of cryptographic algorithms that would be resistant to advanced quantum computers, there is no guarantee that new quantum-proof architectures will be built and appropriate transitions will be implemented across the network at scale in a timely manner; any such changes could require the achievement of broad consensus within the Bitcoin network community and a fork (or multiple forks), and there can be no assurance that such consensus would be achieved or the changes implemented successfully.” – BlackRock, Inc. (2025). S-1 Registration Statement: iShares® Bitcoin Trust ETF. SEC.gov. https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1980994/000143774925015853/bit20250418_posam.htm

As quantum computers become more powerful, the security of Bitcoin  comes under increasing threat. Today, Bitcoin relies on traditional cryptographic frameworks and Proof-of-Work to keep the network secure—approaches that future quantum machines may be able to break. BTQ’s Quantum Sampling Proof-of-Work (QSPoW) is being developed as a next-generation solution that could help protect Bitcoin from these emerging risks, while also using far less energy than current mining methods.

As part of the collaboration, Quandela will deliver datasets tailored to BTQ’s technical requirements, which will include both simulated quantum data and experimental results where feasible. BTQ will use this data to conduct tests on its QSPoW testnet and will share its performance analysis with Quandela. Together, the two companies will also explore techniques to reduce errors in quantum processes and will assess how Quandela’s Belenos quantum processor could be integrated into future versions of the QSPoW protocol.

“This MOU reflects our shared ambition to advance real-world applications for quantum hardware and software,” said Olivier Roussy Newton, CEO of BTQ Technologies. “We’re excited to work with Quandela to rigorously test our QSPoW protocol and set the foundation for a new generation of blockchain security.”

Niccolo Somaschi, CEO of Quandela, added: “Partnering with BTQ highlights the versatility and promise of our photonic quantum platform. This collaboration is a great opportunity to demonstrate how quantum technologies can be used for emerging cryptographic protocols.”

The MOU outlines a framework for ongoing cooperation, information sharing, and public announcements of any meaningful scientific or commercial outcomes.