IBM and Cisco have announced a long-term collaboration to connect quantum computers across large distances, aiming to demonstrate a fully functional quantum network by the end of 2030. If successful, this will lay foundational groundwork for what could eventually become a quantum internet — a high-security, ultra-powerful communication layer built on quantum entanglement and photonic networking.
Both companies emphasise that this vision depends on multiple technologies that do not yet exist, requiring years of R&D alongside universities, national labs, and quantum hardware centres.
A Step Toward Quantum Networking
Quantum computers hold the potential to solve problems in chemistry, materials science, optimisation and cryptography that traditional systems cannot handle. But connecting them over distance adds an entirely new layer of complexity.
IBM’s quantum processors operate inside massive cryogenic systems, where qubits exist at temperatures near absolute zero. Extracting their state and transmitting it reliably between machines requires converting IBM’s “stationary qubits” into “flying qubits” — signals that can travel between systems.
For now, those flying qubits take the form of microwaves. But microwaves cannot travel long distances over fibre. To achieve scale, IBM needs a way to convert microwave qubits into optical photons so they can pass through Cisco’s network switches over standard fibre-optic cables.
The Missing Link: A Microwave-Optical Transducer
This conversion — from microwave to optical signals — is the central challenge. The device capable of this transformation, known as a microwave-optical transducer, is still in early development stages.
IBM and Cisco will work with research institutions including the Superconducting Quantum Materials and Systems Center (SQMS) at Fermilab to push transducer engineering forward.
Only once a transducer is reliable, loss-resistant and scalable will true long-distance quantum networking become feasible.
Taking a System-Level Approach
Cisco and IBM stressed that they are treating this not as two separate roadmaps, but as a single, end-to-end systems problem — from qubit physics to network switching to orchestration software.
Cisco will build the networking layer, driven by its Outshift innovation arm. IBM will focus on quantum hardware, qubit architecture and cryogenic integration. Together, they will also release open-source software for quantum networking protocols, encouraging academic and industry collaboration.
Executives note that the next five years will be focused on prototyping, transducer research, and demonstrating the earliest functional quantum links.
Toward a Future Quantum Internet
If IBM achieves its target of deploying a fully operational quantum computer by 2029, and if the companies can solve the engineering challenges around quantum transmission, the early 2030s could mark the first real-world demonstration of multi-node quantum networking.
While a global quantum internet is still decades away, this partnership signals a coordinated push to turn today’s experimental prototypes into tomorrow’s interconnected quantum infrastructure.
