By Townhall Chicago News Staff
IBM and the University of Chicago on Friday unveiled the company’s most advanced quantum computer at UChicago’s Hyde Park Labs, marking a milestone in Illinois’ push to become a global hub for quantum technology.
The IBM Quantum System Two, the company’s first quantum computer in Illinois, will anchor the National Quantum Algorithm Center, where researchers from universities, national laboratories, startups and industry will develop quantum algorithms for real-world problems ranging from drug discovery to power grid efficiency.
Gov. JB Pritzker joined leaders from UChicago, IBM and the Illinois Quantum and Microelectronics Park for the unveiling at 5207 S. Harper Ave. The system sits on the ground floor of Hyde Park Labs, a research building that opened in 2025 to advance science research and entrepreneurship on Chicago’s South Side. Passersby can view the quantum system through street-level windows facing Harper Avenue.
“I want the next generation of breakthroughs to happen in Illinois and the jobs and opportunity that come with them to benefit the people of Illinois,” Pritzker said in a news release. “With the unveiling of IBM’s Quantum System Two in Hyde Park, we are giving researchers and businesses the tool to turn big ideas into real-world solutions.”
The system is powered by IBM Quantum Nighthawk, which IBM describes as the most powerful quantum chip the company has ever built. Nighthawk connects 120 qubits through 218 tunable couplers in a square lattice, linking each qubit to its four nearest neighbors. That denser connectivity allows users to run more complex circuits while keeping error rates low, according to the university.
“IBM is proud to deploy the first quantum computer of IQMP — an IBM Quantum System Two. Today, it can deliver scientifically useful results to organizations across the state of Illinois and beyond,” Arvind Krishna, chairman and CEO of IBM, said in a statement.
UChicago President Paul Alivisatos called the deployment “the culmination of a years-long partnership that brought together academia, government, and private industry to usher in a new generation of discovery,” according to the university’s announcement.
The unveiling builds on a UChicago-IBM relationship that has grown steadily. In 2023, at the G7 Summit in Japan, UChicago, IBM and the University of Tokyo launched a 10-year, $100 million initiative to develop blueprints for a quantum-centric supercomputer powered by 100,000 qubits. In July, IBM and UChicago researchers announced a demonstration meeting fundamental criteria for quantum advantage, completing a task in about 15 minutes that many leading classical approaches could not feasibly accomplish, according to the university.
Research projects already underway through the algorithm center include pharmaceutical discovery with partners Deloitte, AbbVie and Northwestern University, and power grid optimization with EPRI and the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, according to IBM.
The quantum computer will eventually move to a permanent home at the Illinois Quantum and Microelectronics Park in South Chicago once that campus is completed. Earlier this year, IBM announced it would establish a FutureNow Chicago center at the park, bringing 750 jobs to the region. As part of that effort, IBM is helping City Colleges of Chicago design a new apprenticeship program, according to the university.
Brad Henderson, CEO of tech nonprofit P33, said the unveiling “marks an exciting moment for the industry and our state’s quantum ecosystem,” according to IBM’s announcement.
The system also strengthens a growing effort to turn quantum research into companies and jobs on the South Side. Startups in the UChicago Science Incubator, located in the same building as Hyde Park Labs, have access to a dedicated quantum suite. Harper Court Ventures, a $25 million fund, targets high-impact sectors including quantum computing, according to the university.
The quantum computer is accessible to researchers and organizations through the National Quantum Algorithm Center.
