Pasqal and Welinq Launch €4M ($4.7M USD) InterQo Project to Network Neutral-Atom Processors

Pasqal and Welinq have expanded their strategic partnership to develop networked quantum computing architectures based on interconnected neutral-atom processors. The collaboration is centered on the InterQo project, a €4 million ($4.7 million USD) initiative supported by the Île-de-France Region and BPI France through the France 2030 (i-Demo Régionalisé) program. The project includes a bilateral industrial partnership between the two companies and a research collaboration with the Collège de France (JEIP group), focusing on quantum optics and light-matter interactions to resolve scaling limits inherent in standalone quantum processing units (QPUs).

The technical objective is to transition from individual vertical scaling—currently capped at approximately 10,000 physical qubits for neutral-atom systems—to horizontal scaling via optical quantum interconnects. This involves converting stationary qubits into "flying" photons to share entanglement across separate QPUs. Pasqal is engineering vacuum chambers with integrated photonic interfaces and dynamical qubit positioning, while Welinq is providing its high-rate entanglement generation platform based on waveguide-QED. This hardware acts as a "quantum Ethernet port," utilizing Welinq’s neutral atom-based quantum memory to facilitate high-speed data transfer between processors.

The InterQo project addresses two specific hardware challenges: the design of QPUs with native networking capabilities and the integration of high-efficiency photon extraction systems. By aligning their neutral-atom stacks, which operate at identical optical wavelengths, the consortium aims to deliver production-ready quantum clusters for deployment in existing data center infrastructures. This effort is supported by broader industrial initiatives like Q-PLANET and partnerships with Exail for laser technologies, strengthening the European supply chain for fault-tolerant, networked quantum computation.

For further technical details on the InterQo project and neutral-atom networking, consult the official announcement from Pasqal here.

February 28, 2026