Quantum Machines hits 99.5% gate fidelity on Rigetti’s Novera QPU

By AI, Created 8:51 PM UTC, May 26, 2026, /AGP/ – Quantum Machines said it operated Rigetti Computing’s commercial Novera superconducting QPU with its OPX1000 hardware and QUAlibrate software, reaching 99.5% median two-qubit gate fidelity. The result underscores how external control and calibration stacks are becoming key to scaling superconducting quantum systems beyond a vendor’s internal lab.

Why it matters: - Quantum computing systems need more than qubits to scale. Control, calibration and automation are becoming core infrastructure for reliable performance across different deployments. - The result suggests commercially available superconducting processors can reach high fidelity with an external control stack, not only with the original hardware developer’s internal workflow. - Quantum Machines said the milestone supports broader industry adoption in national labs and commercial environments.

What happened: - Quantum Machines said it successfully operated Rigetti Computing’s commercially available Novera superconducting quantum processing unit using the OPX1000 hardware and QUAlibrate software. - The system reached 99.5% median two-qubit gate fidelity. - Quantum Machines said the work was done onsite at Rigetti. - Quantum Machines said the same platform is already running with Novera systems at Montana State University, Fermilab and Horizon Quantum. - TreQ selected the QM OPX1000 for its multi-QPU system, which includes the Rigetti Novera, to develop its first Open Architecture Quantum specification.

The details: - Novera is a commercially available 9-qubit superconducting quantum processor designed for on-premises deployment in research and development labs. - The processor uses the same underlying architecture as Rigetti’s larger superconducting quantum systems. - The system hit Rigetti’s 99.5% median two-qubit fidelity target across all 11 available qubit couplings. - The system also reached 99.93% median single-qubit fidelity across all nine qubits. - The calibration workflow included automated calibration routines, parallelized tuning across the device, real-time control optimization and continuous system-level performance monitoring. - Quantum Machines described the workflow as a full-device calibration and control process using its OPX1000 control stack and QUAlibrate software. - Quantum Machines said the result was the highest full-system Novera performance it knows of with a quantum control partner, based on benchmarking data. - Rigetti said Novera was designed to provide flexible access to Rigetti’s superconducting quantum technology. - Quantum Machines said its Quantum Orchestration Platform and Rigetti’s Novera QPU are deployed across organizations including Fermilab, Montana State University, Horizon Quantum and TreQ’s broader multi-QPU system. - Quantum Machines’ technical blog and Rigetti researchers detail the workflow and calibration results in a separate post. - Quantum Machines’ website is available here: Learn more - Quantum Machines’ LinkedIn page is available here: Quantum Machines on LinkedIn

Between the lines: - The milestone reflects a shift in quantum computing from one-off lab tuning to repeatable operation across broader environments. - The competitive value is not only in hardware performance, but also in the software and orchestration layer that keeps the system stable over time. - The result points to a growing market for control stacks that can support multiple qubit modalities and multiple deployment settings.

What’s next: - Quantum Machines said the technical workflow will be covered in more detail in its blog with Rigetti researchers. - The broader test case may help determine how quickly superconducting quantum systems can move into more external, repeatable and scalable deployments. - Quantum Machines said future progress will depend on reliable operation across many environments, not just better qubits.

The bottom line: - Quantum Machines and Rigetti are using the Novera result to argue that high-performance quantum computing is becoming an ecosystem problem, not just a chip problem.