Launched in 2024 as a 3-year, $5M global competition, XPRIZE Quantum Applications is designed to generate quantum computing algorithms that can be put into practice to help solve real-world challenges.

Quantum Computing is a multidisciplinary field at the intersection of computer science, physics, and mathematics that seeks to use the information processing power of quantum mechanics to solve otherwise difficult computational problems. Competing teams will develop new applications for quantum computers that address complex, global challenges – for example, predicting the activity and safety of drug molecules in the human body or allowing for more accurate modeling of new battery designs or fusion reactors. Winning contributions may take three forms:

Novel Algorithm: a new quantum algorithm for solving a new class of problems with quantum advantage.

New Application: Work showing how existing quantum algorithms can be used to solve previously unknown applications with a quantum advantage.

Enhanced Performance: Work significantly reducing the resources required for a quantum computer to reach quantum advantage for an already established algorithm or application.