Baidu to donate quantum computing lab, equipment to Beijing institute

BEIJING (Reuters) - China's Baidu plans to donate a quantum computing laboratory and equipment to the government-backed Beijing Academy of Quantum Information Sciences (BAQIS), a company spokesperson said on Wednesday.

Both parties are currently working out the details, the spokesperson added.

Baidu's move followed that of its peer Alibaba, which in November had said it would wind down its quantum computing laboratory and team within its research arm amid a broader company restructuring, donating both the lab and related experimental equipment to Zhejiang University.

Baidu established its quantum computing research centre in 2018, led by Duan Runyao who received his bachelor's and doctorate degrees from Tsinghua University. The research centre's accomplishments include developing Qian Shi, a quantum computer released in 2022.

The BAQIS was established in December 2017 on the initiative of the Beijing municipal government and with contributions from leading academic institutions, including the Chinese Academy of Sciences and Tsinghua University.

Baidu and BAQIS had previously cooperated in the field of quantum research. Last March, the two organizations teamed up to jointly launch the first quantum computing industry intellectual property alliance in China.

(Reporting by Yelin Mo and Liz Lee; editing by Jason Neely and Christian Schmollinger)