Benchmarking quantum advantage
As claims of quantum advantage emerge, this project provides a platform-agnostic framework to collect, validate, and compare results.
- Algorithmiq
- BITS-Pilani Goa
- BlueQubit
- Caltech
- EPFL
- Flatiron Institute
- IBM
- Los Alamos National Lab
- Moderna
- ORNL
- Qedma
- Qunova
- RIKEN
- University of Chicago
- University of Maryland
- University of Toronto
- University of Wisconsin – Madison
- Vector Institute
Active advantage candidates
Active candidates represent the highest bar, where quantum methods are credible contenders but reliable classical benchmarks have yet to catch up.
Submission categories
Active candidates
Problem instances where quantum computations currently appear to challenge leading classical methods, and where further benchmarking is needed to determine whether an advantage exists.
Superseded candidates
Problem instances where quantum computations once appeared to challenge leading classical methods, but for which subsequent classical progress has closed or reversed the apparent gap.
Baseline benchmarks
Problem instances that provide useful reference points for comparing quantum and classical methods, including examples where the state-of-the-art solutions are classical.
What is quantum advantage?
Quantum advantage refers to an information processing task performed more efficiently, cost-effectively, or accurately using a quantum computer than is known to be possible with classical computers alone.
Achieving this milestone requires more than raw performance. It demands trust in the output of noisy quantum devices and scientific rigor in how we validate results.
Why is it hard to verify?
Quantum advantage is a falsifiable scientific hypothesis that must be tested through rigorous experimentation. Because quantum computers tackle problems in ways that classical systems can’t easily replicate, direct comparison is challenging. Verifying any claim of advantage therefore demands several multiple points of analysis.
✏️ "The test of all knowledge is experiment" — R. P. Feynman
Three pathways to quantum advantage
To build confidence in advantage claims, this project explores three pathways for analysis. Learn more about the different paths below.
- Observable estimations 📊Submissions in this tracker report expectation values for observables alongside rigorous error bars for validation.View the tracker
- Variational problems 🌀Submissions must provide upper bounds on the ground-state energy. Verified entries include evidence that the algorithm respects the variational principle.View the tracker
- Classically verifiable problems 🗝️Submissions must demonstrate quantum advantage by scoring solutions against known answers or efficiently checkable witnesses.View the tracker