Search

We’re excited to announce that we have raised £30 million in Series A funding from some of the world’s leading quantum and tech investors. Newsroom 9 January 2023 Announcing our £30m Series A funding We’re excited to announce that we have raised £30 million in Series A funding from some of the world’s leading quantum and tech investors. The round was led by Oxford Science Enterprises and Braavos Investment Advisers. Lansdowne Partners, Prosus Ventures, 2xN, Torch Partners and Hermann Hauser (founder of chip giant ARM) also participated. Founded in 2019, Oxford Ionics takes a unique approach to designing and scaling one of the most promising quantum computing technologies – trapped ions. As multiple technologies vie for position in our race for a quantum future, trapped ions have long proved superior. The highest-performing quantum systems are powered by trapped ions; Oxford Ionics’ technology has been shown to consistently outperform the others. In tests*, our trapped-ion technology holds world records for the highest performance quantum operations, longest quantum coherence time, and highest performance quantum network. Importantly, we have shown that we can maintain this performance using chips manufactured on a semiconductor production line. Record-breaking performance Oxford Ionics’ record-breaking performance stems from our pioneering approach. Until now, trapped-ion systems have largely relied on lasers to control qubits. This approach performs well for small processors, but becomes untenable and error-prone as the size of the processor scales, and the number of qubits increases. Instead of lasers, Oxford Ionics’ trapped-ion processors use a proprietary, patented Electronic Qubit Control (EQC) system to control the qubits. This allows us to combine the unrivalled quantum performance of individual atoms with the scalability and reliability of electronics integrated into silicon chips. Not only does this approach deliver the highest level of performance possible, it does so in a way that makes the Oxford Ionics processors integrable and scalable as standard. We have proven the potential of this approach in a real-world environment, producing our quantum processors in a standard semiconductor foundry through our partnership with Infineon Technologies AG . World-class team Today, the Oxford Ionics team is made up of the brightest minds across the quantum sector who between them have over 100 years of expertise in this space; 10 PhDs and more than 130 peer-reviewed scientific publications. This team has grown tenfold over the past three years and it’s our combination of pioneering vision and deep expertise that has seen us attract some of the leading quantum and tech investors of the past three decades. Before co-founding the quantum-inspired venture capital firm 2xN, investor Niels Nielsen was an early backer, and former chairman of Cambridge Quantum. Cambridge Quantum recently merged with Honeywell Quantum Solutions to form Quantinuum, one of the world’s largest integrated quantum computing companies. Fellow Oxford Ionics investor Hermann Hauser founded chip giant ARM and was an early backer of quantum technologies. We’re hiring! This latest funding round will be used to further our expansion with the hiring of people in roles across the company’s functions – from software developers and engineers to designers, scientists and a growing back-office team. Oxford Ionics’ current vacancies can be found here . Quotes: Dr Chris Ballance, co-founder of Oxford Ionics said: “If we’re to identify and unlock the true power and potential of quantum computing we need to crack the critical issues that are holding it back – scalability, integration and performance. Our unique trapped-ion approach has been developed to address all three. At Oxford Ionics, we’re focused on building technologies that will help quantum computing finish the race, not just take small, incremental steps. Our latest round of funding, and the knowledge, insight and expertise of our new investors bring us even closer to this goal.” Will Goodlad from Oxford Science Enterprises said: “Through its unique approach, developed by some of the world’s best minds in the quantum space, Oxford Ionics is laying the foundations to finally make quantum computing a scalable, integrable and viable option. Building on more than a decade at the forefront of this sector, Chris, Tom and the team have been able to demonstrate, time and again, that their work in the lab can, and will, extend to the real world and we’re thrilled to be joining them on this journey.” Niels Nielsen, co-founder of 2xN said : “Quantum computing opens up the next frontier in computing power for many industries yet getting there requires the development of qubit technologies that can be built at a massive scale. All without sacrificing power, and while keeping error levels to a minimum. Oxford Ionics’ EQC technology offers a path to bringing the power and potential of trapped ion qubits and integrating it into classical semiconductor processes.” Oxford Ionics’ latest funding round takes the total raised by the startup to £37 million. For Press Enquiries contact media@oxionics.com . Notes: *[ PhysRev Lett 113.220501 ] Most accurate quantum operation ever performed, longest coherence time for a bare qubit, highest fidelity quantum state preparation and measurement *[ PhysRevLett.117.060504 ][ Nature 597, 209–213 (2021) ] Highest fidelity two-qubit quantum gate in any technology *[ PhysRevLett.124.110501 ] Highest performance quantum network *[ Nature 555, 75–78 (2018) ] Fastest trapped ion two-qubit gate About Oxford Ionics Oxford Ionics is the high-performance quantum computing company, delivering world-leading innovations to create the most powerful, accurate and reliable quantum computers to solve the world's most important problems. Unparalleled precision is realised by combining the world's highest quality qubits – trapped ions – with a unique noiseless electronic qubit control technology. Oxford Ionics achieves the highest performance ever demonstrated while using chips manufactured on a semiconductor production line. oxionics.com . About Oxford Science Enterprises Oxford Science Enterprises (OSE) is an independent, billion-pound investment company, created in 2015 to found, fund and build transformational businesses via its unique partnership with the University of Oxford, the world’s #1 research university. This partnership enables OSE to work with the brightest academic minds tackling the world’s toughest challenges and guarantees unrivalled access to their scientific research. In collaboration with its global network of entrepreneurs and advisers, OSE shapes and nurtures these complex ideas into successful businesses, while targeting attractive returns for shareholders. Actively focused on a core portfolio of around 40 companies spanning three high-growth, high-impact sectors – Life Sciences, Health Tech, and Deep Tech – the company adopts a flexible, long-term investment approach, recognising the path from ground-breaking research to global markets takes time and resilience. To date, OSE has invested £0.5 billion in over 80 ambitious companies built on Oxford science. Find out more: oxfordscienceenterprises.com | Twitter | LinkedIn About Braavos Investment Advisors Braavos Investment Advisers is a specialist venture capital firm investing in companies founded on scientific breakthroughs. Based in London, it manages $500M. Press Contacts GENERAL PRESS ENQUIRIES media@oxionics.com ON SOCIAL MEDIA

Our qubits are individual atoms - we remove one of their electrons to make ions, allowing us to hold them less than the width of a human hair above our ion-trap chips. OUR TECHNOLOGY Lau nching a new age of computing LEARN MORE . THE FUTURE IS QUANTUM The future is quantum Quantum computers are the most powerful form of computer that the laws of nature allow. At their heart are the quantum bits - qubits - which give quantum computers the power to solve problems no other computers can. OUR TECHNOLOGY OUR TECHNOLOGY Trapped ions and electronic control Our qubits are individual atoms, the universe’s closest approximation of a perfect quantum system. We remove one of their electrons to make ions, allowing us to hold them less than the width of a human hair above our ion-trap chips. Until now, trapped ion-computers have largely relied on lasers to control the qubits. This approach performs well for small processors, but becomes untenable and error-prone as the size of the processor scales, and the number of qubits increases. Instead of lasers, Oxford Ionics’ trapped-ion processors use a proprietary, patented Electronic Qubit Control (EQC) system to control the qubits. This allows us to combine the unrivalled quantum performance of individual atoms with the scalability and reliability of electronics integrated into silicon chips. OUR APPROACH OUR APPROACH TO QUANTUM Better beats bigger Is a quantum computer with 1,000,000 qubits better than one with 100 qubits? It depends on how good the qubits are and how they’re wired up: the error rate and connectivity. A quantum processor chip with just a few hundred perfect qubits can solve problems beyond the reach of any supercomputer, but if the qubits aren’t good enough the same problem can take a machine the size of a warehouse. Everything we do at Oxford Ionics is about building better, not just bigger, quantum computers. That’s why we build our devices with complete connectivity between qubits, and use the technology which has the lowest error rates ever demonstrated. Controlling our qubits using electronics integrated into silicon chips allows us to do this with processors built in the same factories that make chips for cars and phones. Why us WHY US? Pioneering performance Oxford Ionics is built on decades of leadership at Oxford University, home to some of the first pioneers of Quantum Computing and birthplace of Quantum Error Correction. We define the frontiers of what’s possible, with our team setting numerous world records including best quantum gates, longest quantum memory coherence times, and best quantum networks demonstrated anywhere in the world, in any technology. We accomplish things no one else can by bringing together the best physicists and engineers to build a completely new kind of technology. LEARN ABOUT OUR TEAM > THE FUTURE IS QUANTUM OUR TECHNOLOGY Why us OUR APPROACH OUR TECHNOLOGY

In our newest paper we demonstrate a way of controlling qubits that can achieve low gate error rates, parallel qubit control & exclusive use of technologies that scale. Newsroom 11 October 2023 Controlling Qubits at Scale In our newest paper we demonstrate a way of controlling qubits that can achieve low gate error rates, parallel qubit control & exclusive use of technologies that scale. Designing architectures for quantum computing is hard because three things must be achieved: Extremely low gate error rates that stay low as the number of qubits increases. Parallel qubit control - the ability to perform different operations on all of the qubits at the same time*. The exclusive use of technologies that can be built at scale and integrated into a single device. There are many architectures which solve one or two of these challenges but none has yet achieved all three simultaneously. In our newest paper, published in Physical Review Letters, we demonstrate a way of controlling qubits that can. We use a new technique, Forced-Motion Addressing , which makes it possible for large numbers of qubits to be controlled in parallel and with negligible error rates while using only one high-frequency qubit control line. It does this using simple control structures that can be integrated into chips built at scale on standard semiconductor production lines. Here’s how it works. The parallel control challenge Qubits are controlled using high-frequency (either microwave or laser) signals. Most architectures approach the challenge of parallelising qubit control by supplying independent high-frequency signals to each qubit. This approach works well for small processors where non-scalable techniques can be used, such as connecting one coaxial cable to the chip per qubit or shooting lasers over the surface of the chip. However, it becomes extremely challenging to make this approach work at scale and with low error rates for two reasons. First: crosstalk. Interference between all the high-frequency signals makes it hard to keep errors low as the number of qubits increases. Second, it is incredibly hard to build chips which implement these architectures at scale: Just connecting thousands of microwave or optical signals to a chip is beyond the cutting edge of existing packaging technology - and that’s before one starts thinking about where those signals come from and how they get to the chip. How does one fit all of the structures required to deliver these signals to the qubits into a crowded chip while managing cross-talk? The power dissipated by all of these high-frequency signals needs to be managed and removed from the chips. We need another way. Forced-Motion Addressing (a) A typical parallel qubit control architecture, with independent control structures and sources for each qubit. (b) The Forced-Motion Addressing architecture, where the qubits are controlled using a single high-frequency line combined with localised low-frequency electric fields. Our approach introduces a new paradigm for qubit control, allowing a single high-frequency structure to control large numbers of qubits in parallel. It does this by leveraging another form of parallel control that’s already built into ion trap chips but not normally used for the qubit states: the electric fields used to trap ions and move them around the chip. These electric fields are created by applying low-frequency voltages to trapping electrodes built into the ion-trap chip. These electrodes are engineered to allow individual ions to be moved around in parallel and with low cross-talk. Crucially, the fact that these signals are low frequency and produced by small voltages makes them vastly easier to integrate at scale and with low cross-talk than the high-frequency qubit control signals. They dissipate almost no power and, thanks to our WISE architecture, we know how to build and wire them up at scale. To date no one has used trapping electrodes for qubit control because ion qubits respond to magnetic not electric fields. This is where our new technique comes in: we use the trapping electrodes like switches to locally control the interaction between each qubit and a single, shared high-frequency line. As a result, even though all qubits see the same control field, their interaction with it is controlled by the electric fields. The technique works by applying small (millivolt) oscillating voltages to the trapping electrodes to make the ions vibrate backwards and forwards inside the trap. These vibrations change how the ions respond to the high-frequency control field. As a result, the trapping electrodes can provide fully localised control of the qubits, despite the high-frequency qubit-control field being shared between all qubits. Forced-Motion Addressing lets a single high-frequency line do all the heavy lifting for an entire chip, with small localised voltages telling each ion what gates to do in response. By reusing the transport electrodes for qubit control, it lets us achieve full parallel control while adding only minimal extra complexity to our chips. Integrating large numbers of voltages into chips while managing interference is a well-solved problem in the microelectronics industry, and one that has already been solved to make the ion traps work. If you’re interested to go deeper into how the technology works, read our paper, Coherent Control of Trapped-Ion Qubits with Localized Electric Fields Built for scale The real test of a quantum architecture is whether big computers are made from “more of the same” stuff that small computers are made of. Afterall, the purpose of building today’s small-scale quantum computers is to pave the way for tomorrow’s quantum supercomputers, but this only works if they’re built the same way and reach the same error rates. Ion traps are the leading approach to quantum computing and have some of the most mature architectures around. Yet, large numbers of high-power, free-space laser beams and other non-scalable technologies still play critical roles in roadmaps. Not ours! A focus on building technology that scales is the heart of everything we do at Oxford Ionics. * There is some nuance about exactly what one means by “at the same time”. Long story short, if the time it takes to perform a gate on each qubit increases linearly or worse with the number of qubits, it doesn’t count as parallel. Press Contacts GENERAL PRESS ENQUIRIES media@oxionics.com ON SOCIAL MEDIA

The company received the award last night during a reception at the Palace of Westminster attended by members of the IOP and senior UK policymakers. Newsroom 26 November 2024 Oxford Ionics awarded Business Innovation Award from the Institute of Physics (IOP) The company received the award last night during a reception at the Palace of Westminster attended by members of the IOP and senior UK policymakers. OXFORD, 26th November, 2024: Oxford Ionics, a world leader in trapped-ion quantum computing, today announced it has won a Business Innovation Award from the Institute of Physics (IOP). The company received the award last night during a reception at the Palace of Westminster attended by members of the IOP and senior UK policymakers. Hosted annually since 2012, the IOP Business Awards honours the significant contributions that physics and physicists make in industry across a wide variety of sectors – including quantum computing, meteorology, aerospace, energy, and defence. The Business Innovation Award celebrates organisations who have excelled in innovation through the application of physics to groundbreaking products or services. Oxford Ionics was recgonised for its pioneering approach to building powerful quantum computers. The company uses a proprietary technology, ‘Electronic Qubit Control’, which uses electronics instead of lasers to control its qubits. With this innovation, Oxford Ionics can unlock world-leading quantum performance on chips that can be manufactured at scale via standard semiconductor production lines. This approach has yielded the highest performing quantum platform in the world. In 2024, Oxford Ionics set the world records in the three most important metrics of quantum computing performance: single-qubit gate fidelity, two-qubit gate fidelity, and quantum state preparation and measurement (SPAM). Its customers include the National Quantum Computing Centre (NQCC) and Germany’s Cyberagentur. Dr Chris Ballance, co-founder and CEO, commented: “ Building powerful quantum computers requires integrating novel physics with world-leading engineering innovation. This award is a testament to our pioneering approach to this challenge. We are honoured to be recognised by the Institute of Physics for these efforts, alongside other innovative UK companies that are applying physics to some of the biggest challenges facing our world today.” About Oxford Ionics Oxford Ionics was co-founded in 2019 by Dr Tom Harty and Dr Chris Ballance who both hold world records in quantum breakthroughs. The team includes 60 global experts across physics, quantum architecture, engineering and software and expects to triple headcount over the next 18 months as the business scales internationally. Oxford Ionics has raised £37 million to date with investors including Braavos, OSE, Lansdowne Partners, Prosus Ventures, 2xN, and Hermann Hauser (founder of chip giant ARM). In 2024, Oxford Ionics rapidly commercialised its technology, selling full-stack quantum computers to the UK’s National Quantum Computing Centre (NQCC) and Germany’s Cyberagentur. The company also holds the world records in the three most important metrics for quantum performance: single- and two-qubit gate fidelity and quantum state preparation and measurement (SPAM). For more information, visit our website www.oxionics.com Press Contacts GENERAL PRESS ENQUIRIES media@oxionics.com ON SOCIAL MEDIA

Oxford Ionics today announced it has appointed Chris Goodings as VP Engineering. Newsroom 18 October 2024 Oxford Ionics Appoints Chris Goodings as VP Engineering Oxford Ionics today announced it has appointed Chris Goodings as VP Engineering. Chris brings two decades of engineering experience to Oxford Ionics, and will oversee the company’s growing technical teams OXFORD, 18th October, 2024: Oxford Ionics, a world leader in trapped-ion quantum computing, today announced it has appointed Chris Goodings as its VP Engineering. Chris will oversee the company’s growing technical departments, including its Quantum Science & Engineering, Quantum Infrastructure, and Software Development teams. Chris has over two decades of experience managing high-performing engineering teams and implementing product roadmaps at disruptive businesses. With a PhD in Physics from the University of Cambridge, Chris has held senior positions at leading semiconductor companies, including NVIDIA and Graphcore. At Oxford Ionics, Chris will be responsible for the science and engineering teams as they execute an ambitious roadmap to build the world’s most powerful, commercially-valuable quantum computers. Oxford Ionics has grown to 60 employees worldwide across its main offices in Oxford, UK and Boulder, CO, and expects to triple headcount in the next 18 months. Chris’ appointment comes off the back of a landmark year for Oxford Ionics. Earlier this year, the company set world records in the three most important metrics for quantum computing performance: single gate fidelity, two-qubit gate fidelity , and quantum state preparation and measurement (SPAM) . It also rapidly commercialised its quantum computers, selling systems to customers including the UK’s National Quantum Computing Centre (NQCC) and Germany’s Cyberagentur. Tom Harty, Oxford Ionics co-founder and CTO, commented : “I'm thrilled to have Chris Goodings joining as VP Engineering. As a founder of a deeptech business, one of the most important things you do is getting the right technical leadership and with Chris we have a world-class fit. He has an impressive track record of bringing disruptive technologies to market at speed and scale — combined with our quantum expertise and vision, Chris will supercharge our engineering efforts. I'm excited to be working with him as we enter this next phase in our journey to build the world’s most powerful quantum computers.” On his appointment, Chris Goodings commented : “From my first conversations with Oxford Ionics, I was struck by both the passion for innovation and the promise of its technology. The company is at the forefront of bringing market-catalysing quantum computers to life, and I am excited to be joining the team on the next stage of this journey. I’m looking forward to helping shape Oxford Ionics’ world-class science and engineering teams so that they continue to hit the engineering milestones required to bring quantum computing to commercial reality.” About Oxford Ionics Oxford Ionics was co-founded in 2019 by Dr Tom Harty and Dr Chris Ballance who both hold world records in quantum breakthroughs. The team includes 60 global experts across physics, quantum architecture, engineering and software and expects to triple headcount over the next 18 months as the business scales internationally. Oxford Ionics has raised £37 million to date with investors including Braavos, OSE, Lansdowne Partners, Prosus Ventures, 2xN, and Hermann Hauser (founder of chip giant ARM). In 2024, Oxford Ionics rapidly commercialised its technology, selling full-stack quantum computers to the UK’s National Quantum Computing Centre (NQCC) and Germany’s Cyberagentur. The company also holds the world records in the three most important metrics for quantum performance: single- and two-qubit gate fidelity and quantum state preparation and measurement (SPAM). For more information, visit our website www.oxionics.com Press Contacts GENERAL PRESS ENQUIRIES media@oxionics.com ON SOCIAL MEDIA