A quantum startup from Shanghai has raised $44 million: a former Microsoft engineer is building a neutral-atom computer
Shanghai-based startup Taiyi Quantum has completed a pre-seed funding round of 300 million yuan, equivalent to approximately $44 million. The round was led by venture capital giants Gaorong Venture Capital and IDG Capital — a strong signal to the market indicating growing institutional investor interest in hybrid technologies at the intersection of quantum computing and blockchain.
At the helm of the company is Liu Hongbin, a former architect of the Azure Quantum cloud quantum service at Microsoft. Under his leadership, Taiyi Quantum is developing a quantum computer architecture based on neutral ytterbium atoms. In this model, qubits are individual atoms held in optical traps using lasers — an approach that promises higher stability and scalability compared to traditional superconducting qubits.
Raising $44 million at such an early stage is not just a financial transaction. It is a marker that investors see potential in alternative quantum architectures that could bypass the limitations of current quantum systems. For the crypto industry, this is particularly important: resistance to quantum attacks and the development of post-quantum cryptography are becoming critical security factors.
Expert opinion: Developing quantum computers based on neutral atoms is one of the most promising paths toward creating fault-tolerant machines. If Taiyi Quantum can demonstrate a practical implementation of such an architecture within the next 3-5 years, it could fundamentally change the dynamics of the quantum computing race. For the crypto community, this means the window of opportunity to prepare for the quantum transition is becoming increasingly narrow.