China’s Quantum Computing Retreat — What's Behind Technology Giants Alibaba And Baidu Scaling Back Efforts?

Two Chinese technology heavyweights, Baidu and Alibaba, have curiously shuttered their quantum computing development efforts in the last couple of months.

Quantum computing technology harnesses the laws of quantum mechanics to solve problems beyond the reach of classical computers.

In November 2023, Alibaba reportedly brought the curtain down on a quantum computing laboratory and let go of the 30 employees working in the lab amid a broader company restructuring.

The e-commerce company donated the lab and related experimental equipment to Zhejiang University. The employees, too, were considered for quantum research roles within the academic institute.

The lab was part of Alibaba Group’s in-house research initiative called the DAMO Academy, set up in 2017 for the purpose of researching advanced technologies like artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning. Reports suggest an investment by Alibaba on the order of $15 billion in their overall research effort.

On the cutting of the quantum computing lab, a DAMO Academy spokesperson told Reuters that the research wing would direct its focus on work that makes it a leader in AI research, seeking AI applications in areas like agriculture and healthcare.

Not long after, early in the new year, Baidu revealed that they were planning to donate a quantum computing lab and related equipment to the government-backed Beijing Academy of Quantum Information Sciences (BAQIS). Both parties, who have previously collaborated on quantum computing research, are working out the details, a Baidu spokesperson told Reuters.

The search engine giant set up the Institute for Quantum Computing at Baidu Research in March 2018. Baidu aimed to integrate quantum technologies into its core business, with its quantum computing-focused institute looking to lead the world in quantum AI research.

The company hit a high in 2022 with the release of its superconducting quantum computer “Qian Shi,” which in Chinese means “the origin of all things is found in the heavens.” It featured a 10-quantum-bit (qubit) processor. Baidu said they had also designed a 36-qubit superconducting quantum chip.

The institute at Baidu also developed an all-platform quantum hardware-software integration solution, called Liang Xi, which is designed to interface seamlessly with Qian Shi and other quantum computers.

“Baidu’s innovations make it possible to access quantum computing anytime and anywhere, even via smartphone. Baidu’s platform is also instantly compatible with a wide range of quantum chips, meaning ‘plug-and-play’ access is now a reality,” Runyao Duan, Director of the Institute for Quantum Computing at Baidu Research, has said.

BAQIS, which will soon receive a quantum computing lab and related equipment from Baidu, teamed up with Baidu in March 2023 to launch China’s first quantum computing industry intellectual property (IP) alliance. The idea was to simplify cross-licencing of intellectual property and foster innovation within the industry.

Despite all this activity since the late 2010s, both Alibaba and Baidu — major technology players that would easily be counted among the world’s top 10 quantum computing companies — are now winding down their quantum computing efforts.

Various causes have been speculated for these twin developments. 

At a time when AI applications like ChatGPT are taking the world by storm, a major investment now in a technology that is still far away from meaningful commercialisation may prove costly for private players who have to care about their bottom line ultimately.

“The problem with quantum computers is that for them to become commercially useful, you need to be able to bring a large number of qubits into controllable quantum states — and that’s really, really difficult,” Sabine Hossenfelder, a German physicist, author, and content creator, explains on her YouTube channel “Science without the gobbledygook.”

“Estimates say the number we need to reach is roughly a million,” she says. Quantum computing research is currently working at a level of about 50 qubits.

“The major question for quantum computing is not ‘Does it work?’ We know it works. The question is, ‘Will it scale?’” Hossenfelder says, drawing a similarity between the development of quantum computers with that of nuclear fusion in the early years. Nuclear fusion was proven to work decades ago, yet commercialisation remains a long way away.

Alibaba and Baidu’s donation of quantum computing resources to academia or the government makes sense in this light as the latter two can pursue scientific and technological objectives for a long time without worrying about funding and quick returns.

Additionally, unlike the private sector, academia and especially the government are aiming to step on it, lest they lose out to the United States (US) and other countries in the development of quantum computing and other advanced technologies.

In this regard, the Chinese government might even be seeking a tighter grip over the development of advanced technologies. In China’s Fourteenth Five-Year Plan (2021-25), quantum computing was among the science-and-technology areas identified for speedier development. The area might, therefore, be high on the government’s own technological agenda.

Beyond the quantum computing fold, Chinese technology companies may also be worried about the US’ relentless moves to limit China’s access to chips that could help the country make significant technological advances.

In limiting chip access, the Biden administration’s goal is to prevent China from making “breakthroughs in artificial intelligence” and building “sophisticated computers that are critical to military applications.”

The move has probably left an impact. In November last year, Alibaba called off plans to spin-off its cloud business, part of the biggest restructuring in its 24-year history, citing “uncertainties created by recent U.S. export restrictions on advanced computing chips.”

Meanwhile, China recently launched a third-generation superconducting quantum computer called “Origin Wukong.” It is equipped with a 72-qubit superconducting quantum chip, called “Wukong chip,” and is said to be China's most advanced applicable quantum computer.

As Alibaba and Baidu change course, China's private quantum computing landscape, and overall technology priorities, may be shifting. But the government looks keen to accelerate efforts, possibly under its watch.