Cisco Builds a Chip to Help Quantum Computers Talk to Each Other

Have you ever tried to talk to a friend across the playground, but your voices weren’t loud enough to hear each other? Imagine if there was a magical string you could both hold that let you send messages instantly — even if your friend was all the way across town. That’s kind of what Cisco is working on, but with super-smart computers called quantum computers.

On May 6, a company named Cisco showed off a special new chip. This chip isn’t for your regular computer — it’s for connecting quantum computers together. Quantum computers are different from the ones we use at home or school. They use tiny particles and follow weird science rules, like something called “entanglement.” That’s when two particles are connected in a way that even Albert Einstein called "spooky action at a distance."

The chip uses light particles called photons. It makes two of them get "entangled," then sends each one to a different computer. Because the photons are linked, the two computers can use them to talk — instantly!

Cisco says this could help in big ways, even before we have quantum computers everywhere. For example, banks could use it to make sure trades happen at exactly the right time. Scientists could use it to spot meteorites flying through space.

Other big tech companies like Google, Amazon, and Microsoft are also working on quantum computers. But Cisco is focusing on helping them talk to each other. They’re even opening a new lab in Santa Monica, California, to work more on this cool idea.

Right now, the chip is just a test. It’s not ready to sell yet, but it’s a big first step. As one of the leaders at Cisco said, “To build a quantum network, you need an entanglement chip. This is the first piece of that puzzle.”

Isn’t it amazing what science can do? Would you want to help build something like this one day? https://www.reuters.com/business/media-telecom/cisco-shows-quantum-networking-chip-opens-new-lab-2025-05-06/