Quantum computing software startup Quantagonia GmbH said today it has completed its seed funding round, which combined with an earlier pre-seed round brings its total amount raised to €4.3 million (around $4.68 million).

Today’s round was led by Tensor Ventures and saw the participation of three European deep tech venture capital firms, plus a state investment and a family office.

Frankfurt-based Quantagonia is the creator of a Hybrid Quantum Platform that’s said to combine the advantages of classical computers with the capabilities of nascent quantum computers, which rely on quantum mechanics to perform computations. One of the advantages of Quantagonia’s platform is that it enables existing computer programs and code to be used with quantum machines, making them more accessible to developers and other users.

Quantagonia says that researchers continue to push the boundaries of what’s possible with classical computers, especially in areas such as optimization algorithms, simulation processes and artificial intelligence. However, it claims that the industry is close to reaching the absolute limit of what classical computers are capable of.

At the same time, businesses are faced with decision models that are growing in complexity and higher demands in terms of process control. Quantum computing can provide a solution to these complex problems, as its quantum physics-based architecture is potentially able to perform calculations millions of times faster than even the most powerful supercomputers available today.

There are challenges that must be overcome if quantum computing is to become established as the norm for solving such problems. For one thing, the industry is still trying to work out the best way to stabilize the quantum processors that power these machines. Despite their potential, quantum computers do not currently exceed the capabilities of classical machines.

A second problem is that the code, algorithms and applications used with classical computers will need to be redefined to work with quantum processors, and that’s where Quantagonia comes into the equation. Its Hybrid Quantum Platform serves as a bridge between the “old” computer world and the “new” age of quantum computing, with a cross-platform compiler that effortlessly compiles standard code into a format that’s executable by quantum machines.

Quantum may deliver a fundamental transformation in the computing industry, but it requires a transition to an entirely new programming model, said Constellation Research Inc. analyst Holger Mueller. Such a transition will be a big challenge, because the world is short of developers even for classical computers, he added.

“We will need hybrid solutions that enable enterprises to run quantum models and algorithms on both traditional and quantum computing hardware,” Mueller explained. “It’s paramount that enterprises will be able to reuse their code assets, because it is very hard and takes a lot of resources to build them in the first place. Quantagonia enables this, and it’s good to see the innovation coming from Europe and specifically Germany. Anyone interested in quantum computing would do well to follow its first customer success stories.”

Quantagonia co-founder and Chief Executive Dirk Zechiel stressed that it’s vital for Germany and Europe to become “quantum ready.” He warned against repeating the past, where Europe missed out on breakthroughs and failed to seize the initiative in AI, saying companies must act now to reap the benefits of quantum computing in the future.

Martin Drdul of Tensor Ventures said Quantagonia deserves praise for facilitating the transfer of basic research into industry applications. “In Germany, the transfer from basic research to industry is generally too cumbersome,” he said. “So Quantagonia stands out as one of the few European startups that facilitates this process, leveraging its expertise in research and successful business development and strengthening our economic and technological location.”

Quantagonia’s platform is available for complex use-case analysis, optimization problems, simulation processes and AI and machine learning workloads. The company will use the funds from today’s round to invest in product development and expand its sales efforts.

Image: Quantagonia