IonQ (NYSE: IONQ) today announced it has demonstrated 99.99% two-qubit gate fidelity, surpassing the 2024 world record and setting a new benchmark for quantum computing performance. This achievement addresses a critical limitation in today’s quantum computers, the error rate of two-qubit gates, which broadly defines overall system accuracy. By exceeding the ‘four-nines’ threshold, IonQ significantly reduces the need for error correction and enables the execution of more complex quantum algorithms. The demonstration, achieved using IonQ’s proprietary Electronic Qubit Control (EQC) technology, positions the company ahead of competitors and advances its roadmap toward scaling to millions of qubits by 2030, according to Niccolo de Masi, Chairman and CEO of IonQ.
IonQ Achieves Quantum Computing Milestone with 99.99% Two-Qubit Gate Fidelity.
IonQ recently announced a significant breakthrough in quantum computing, achieving 99.99% two-qubit gate fidelity. This new world record, surpassing the previous benchmark of 99.97% set in 2024, demonstrates substantial progress in the stability and accuracy of quantum operations. The company released technical papers detailing this achievement, solidifying its position as a leader in the field and highlighting the critical role of two-qubit gate fidelity in defining quantum computing performance. According to IonQ, this single metric largely dictates the complexity of algorithms that can be successfully run on a quantum computer.
Building on this milestone, IonQ’s success is attributed to its proprietary Electronic Qubit Control (EQC) technology. This innovative approach utilises precision electronics instead of lasers to control qubits, resulting in markedly improved performance. The company anticipates that this level of hardware performance is now sufficient to scale to millions of qubits by 2030. This achievement unlocks several advantages, including dramatically improved error-corrected performance and the ability to address complex use cases previously unattainable with lower-performing systems.
The implications of this advancement are considerable, as IonQ projects a 10^10 (10,000,000,000x) performance increase over the previous 99.9% fidelity standard on similarly sized devices. Fewer physical qubits will be required to build large-scale, fault-tolerant quantum systems, accelerating IonQ’s time to market and potentially lowering development costs. These results were achieved using prototypes in IonQ’s research and development labs, which will serve as the foundation for its forthcoming 256-qubit systems planned for demonstration in 2026.
Advancements in IonQ’s Electronic Qubit Control Technology
IonQ’s achievement of 99.99% two-qubit gate fidelity is directly linked to advancements in its proprietary Electronic Qubit Control (EQC) technology. Unlike many quantum systems that rely on lasers for qubit manipulation, IonQ utilizes precision electronics to achieve unprecedented control and accuracy. This innovative approach simplifies the quantum system, reducing complexity and potential sources of error. The company announced that EQC allows for more stable and repeatable qubit operations, ultimately contributing to the record-breaking fidelity.
Building on this, the EQC technology represents a significant departure from traditional quantum control methods. Instead of bulky and sensitive laser systems, IonQ integrates all qubit control directly onto microchips. This integration reduces signal loss and allows for denser qubit packing, paving the way for scaling to larger systems. According to IonQ, this precision electronic control allows for finer adjustments to qubit states, minimizing decoherence , a major obstacle in quantum computing. The company’s prototypes, used to demonstrate the 99.99% fidelity, will form the foundation for its planned 256-qubit systems debuting in 2026.
Meanwhile, the implications of EQC extend beyond just improved fidelity. IonQ anticipates that this technology will significantly reduce the physical qubit requirements for building large-scale, fault-tolerant quantum computers. Fewer qubits needed translates to lower costs and faster development timelines. Furthermore, the simplified system architecture enabled by EQC potentially lowers the barriers to entry for quantum computing, opening up new possibilities for research and application. The company believes that EQC is a key enabler for unlocking the full potential of quantum computation and delivering practical quantum solutions.
The Path to Large-Scale Fault-Tolerant Quantum Systems
Building on this achievement, IonQ projects that its current fidelity levels dramatically reduce the qubit count required for practical error correction. The company announced that reaching 99.99% fidelity unlocks a pathway to achieving logical qubits with significantly fewer physical qubits, a crucial step toward building large-scale, fault-tolerant quantum computers. This advancement translates to a potential ten-fold reduction in the resources needed to implement robust error correction schemes, accelerating the timeline for solving complex problems beyond the reach of classical computers. According to IonQ, this reduction in qubit overhead is a key differentiator in the race to build practical quantum systems.
Meanwhile, the implications of this fidelity milestone extend beyond simply reducing qubit counts. IonQ anticipates that its high-performance qubits will enable the development of more efficient quantum algorithms and applications. Specifically, the company highlights the potential for a 10^10 (10,000,000,000x) performance increase on applications compared to systems operating at the previously established 99.9% fidelity standard, on devices of the same size. This leap in performance is expected to unlock entirely new use cases in areas such as materials discovery, drug development, and financial modeling, where complex simulations demand high computational accuracy.
This demonstrated fidelity is not merely a theoretical achievement; it’s being actively integrated into IonQ’s roadmap for future systems. Prototypes utilizing this technology are already forming the basis for the company’s planned 256-qubit systems, slated for demonstration in 2026. Niccolo de Masi from IonQ emphasized that this represents a critical step in scaling their quantum technology, and that the novel Electronic Qubit Control (EQC) technology is uniquely positioned to deliver the precision needed to control qubits at this level. The company believes this approach provides a distinct advantage over laser-based control systems, paving the way for a future where fault-tolerant quantum computing becomes a reality.
This achievement by IonQ, surpassing the 2024 record with 99.99% two-qubit gate fidelity, represents a critical step toward scalable and fault-tolerant quantum systems. Niccolo de Masi from IonQ highlights that this level of performance unlocks the potential for running increasingly complex algorithms with fewer error corrections. The implications extend beyond quantum computing to fields reliant on advanced computation and modeling.
“This level of quantum performance has been the industry’s north star for decades and crossing it brings fault-tolerant quantum systems years closer to mass market adoption. For our global customers, it means unlocking more value from quantum computing sooner, while dramatically lowering the cost and complexity of large-scale systems.”
Chairman and CEO Niccolo de Masi, IonQ
For industries requiring substantial processing power, such as materials science and drug discovery, this represents a pathway toward previously unattainable simulations. IonQ’s progress, building on its Electronic Qubit Control technology, could enable the realization of its roadmap to scale to millions of qubits by 2030, fundamentally changing the landscape of high-performance computing and accelerating innovation across multiple sectors.
