IBM announced today that it has successfully joined and cooled two cryogenic modules into a single shared environment, marking a key engineering milestone on its roadmap to IBM Quantum Starling, the company’s planned first large-scale fault-tolerant quantum computer targeted for 2029.
The new modular architecture is designed to scale into an ultra-cold system capable of linking hundreds of quantum chips. Combined, the first two operational modules stand more than 8 feet tall and 8 feet wide. Initial tests showed the system can jointly cool to 4 Kelvin (the temperature of liquid helium) in under five days, then reach a final temperature below 15 millikelvin—more than 180 times colder than deep space.
Each module’s vacuum enclosure provides up to 12 times more wiring space than IBM’s most widely used quantum systems. The box-shaped design allows modules to connect in a tight row and supports IBM’s L-coupler technology, which links separate quantum processors so they can share information and operate as part of a larger system.
By 2027, IBM’s roadmap calls for using L-couplers to connect multiple processors into a system with at least 1,000 programmable qubits. Later this year, IBM plans to install IBM Quantum Nighthawk processors into the modules for expanded performance testing. At the time of Starling’s delivery in 2029, each cryogenic module is expected to house thousands of qubits.
“Bringing fault-tolerant quantum computers to industries depends on several fundamental advances,” said Jay Gambetta, Director of IBM Research and IBM Fellow. “The successful connection and operation of these cryogenic modules signals a leap forward in that direction and will accelerate our progress alongside continued innovation in quantum hardware, software, and algorithms.”
The modular design incorporates core elements of IBM Quantum System Two’s environment in a form that allows independent testing, improvement, and iteration of components. IBM stated the deployment provides further evidence it is systematically executing against its quantum roadmap.