Nvidia says it ran 104-qubit fault-tolerant quantum simulation on Jülich's JUPITER
In short
Nvidia announced on 19 October that its researchers completed a 104-qubit fault-tolerant quantum computing simulation on the JUPITER supercomputer at Germany's Jülich Supercomputing Centre. Nvidia said it validated a method called magic state cultivation, which needs 90% fewer physical qubits than earlier approaches.
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On 19 October, local time, Nvidia announced that its researchers had completed a 104-qubit fault-tolerant quantum computing simulation on the JUPITER supercomputer at the Jülich Supercomputing Centre in Germany. Nvidia said it is the largest comprehensive simulation of a fault-tolerant quantum processor to date. [ 3 , 4 ]
The research validated a technique called magic state cultivation, which needs 90% fewer physical qubits than earlier methods, according to Nvidia. IT Home explained that the earlier approach, magic state distillation, was estimated to take 90% to 95% of a quantum computer's physical qubits. Cultivation instead generates and purifies the state in a small color code, then moves it into a surface code by code switching. [ 2 , 3 , 4 ]
The simulation used Nvidia GH200 superchips and studied the computation under realistic hardware noise. Nvidia said this lets researchers assess and optimise designs before hardware is built. IT Home reported that 8192 GPUs were used, and that an earlier Jülich study of the same kind had simulated only 50 qubits, under ideal, noise-free conditions. [ 3 , 4 ]
Nvidia said the technique could advance quantum computing applications in drug discovery, financial modelling and materials science. IT Home added that the work would shorten the path to practical quantum computers by years. [ 2 , 3 , 4 ]
IT Home described JUPITER as Europe's first exascale supercomputer, operated by Jülich, with about 24,000 Nvidia GH200 Grace Hopper superchips, in service since 2025. It also noted that on 15 October Google's quantum AI team published a paper in Science reporting magic state cultivation on its Willow processor, with errors cut by about 40 times. Google said the result still needs validation at larger scale, and IT Home said the Nvidia simulation addresses that gap. [ 4 ]
CLS reported the news first among the outlets, at 02:03 on 20 October, and 36Kr repeated the CLS report. [ 1 , 2 ]
Why it matters
Nvidia and the outlets say the work could speed up practical uses of quantum computing in drug discovery, financial modelling and materials science. The documents carry only Nvidia's own account of the result.
Key facts
- Nvidia announced on 19 October, local time, that its researchers completed a 104-qubit fault-tolerant quantum computing simulation. [ 3 , 4 ]
- The simulation ran on the JUPITER supercomputer at the Jülich Supercomputing Centre in Germany. [ 3 , 4 ]
- Nvidia described it as the largest comprehensive simulation of a fault-tolerant quantum processor to date. [ 3 ]
- The study validated a technique called magic state cultivation, which needs 90% fewer physical qubits than earlier methods. [ 2 , 3 , 4 ]
- The simulation used Nvidia GH200 superchips and accounted for realistic hardware noise. [ 3 , 4 ]
- IT Home reported that 8192 GPUs were used. [ 4 ]
Confirmed by several sources
- Nvidia announced a 104-qubit fault-tolerant quantum computing simulation carried out at the Jülich Supercomputing Centre. [ 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 ]
- The simulation validated magic state cultivation, which requires about 90% fewer physical qubits than previous methods. [ 2 , 3 , 4 ]
- The simulation ran on the JUPITER supercomputer, which is built on Nvidia GH200 superchips. [ 3 , 4 ]
Still unclear
- How many GPUs the simulation used. Only IT Home gives the figure of 8192 GPUs.
- Whether the simulation will shorten the path to practical quantum computers by years. Only IT Home makes this claim, and it does not say who estimated it.
- Whether the result has been independently reviewed. All coverage relies on Nvidia's announcement; the documents mention no outside assessment.