A superconducting quantum computer developed and made in Taiwan represents a significant stride in Taiwan’s quantum technology, President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) said yesterday.
Tsai was speaking at a forum organized by Academia Sinica on the progress in research made by its Thematic Center for Quantum Computer.
Lauding the breakthrough as a testament to Taiwan’s prowess in the field, Tsai said the plan was initiated by Academia Sinica more than three years ago.
Photo: CNA
That led to National Tsing Hua University’s development of quantum network coding in May last year, which is expected to boost Taiwan’s capabilities in cybersecurity, national security, finance and biomedicine.
The new computer was developed through a quantum technology project funded by the National Science and Technology Council, Academia Sinica said.
The project came to fruition in October last year when Academia Sinica successfully developed a computer based on 5-quantum-bit (qubit) chips in collaboration with multiple domestic and foreign institutions.
On Jan. 19, the new quantum computer began providing online services to program participants and it is used by developers as a platform for developing complementary metal oxide semiconductor and parametric amplifier technologies, the institution said.
Taiwan is one of the few countries capable of independently producing a superconducting quantum computer, Thematic Center executive officer Chen Chii-dong (陳啟東) said earlier this month.
The research institute initially proposed the idea of developing a superconducting quantum computer in Taiwan in 2019 and has since received government support, Academia Sinica president James Liao (廖俊智) said yesterday.
Tsai pledged to inject additional funding into Academia Sinica’s south branch to support its continued development of quantum computing technologies and efforts to establish a quantum technology industry chain.
Taiwan is to receive the first batch of Lockheed Martin F-16 Block 70 jets from the US late this month, a defense official said yesterday, after a year-long delay due to a logjam in US arms deliveries. Completing the NT$247.2 billion (US$7.69 billion) arms deal for 66 jets would make Taiwan the third nation in the world to receive factory-fresh advanced fighter jets of the same make and model, following Bahrain and Slovakia, the official said on condition of anonymity. F-16 Block 70/72 are newly manufactured F-16 jets built by Lockheed Martin to the standards of the F-16V upgrade package. Republic of China
Taiwan-Japan Travel Passes are available for use on public transit networks in the two countries, Taoyuan Metro Corp said yesterday, adding that discounts of up to 7 percent are available. Taoyuan Metro, the Taipei MRT and Japan’s Keisei Electric Railway teamed up to develop the pass. Taoyuan Metro operates the Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport MRT Line, while Keisei Electric Railway offers express services between Tokyo’s Narita Airport, and the Keisei Ueno and Nippori stations in the Japanese capital, as well as between Narita and Haneda airports. The basic package comprises one one-way ticket on the Taoyuan MRT Line and one Skyliner ticket on
Many Japanese couples are coming to Taiwan to obtain donated sperm or eggs for fertility treatment due to conservatism in their home country, Taiwan’s high standards and low costs, doctors said. One in every six couples in Japan is receiving infertility treatment, Japanese Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare data show. About 70,000 children are born in Japan every year through in vitro fertilization (IVF), or about one in every 11 children born. Few people accept donated reproductive cells in Japan due to a lack of clear regulations, leaving treatment in a “gray zone,” Taichung Nuwa Fertility Center medical director Wang Huai-ling (王懷麟)
PROXIMITY: Prague is closer to Dresden than Berlin is, so Taiwanese firms are expected to take advantage of the Czech capital’s location, the Executive Yuan official said Taiwan plans to boost cooperation with the Czech Republic in semiconductor development due to Prague’s pivotal role in the European IC industry, Executive Yuan Secretary-General Kung Ming-hsin (龔明鑫) said. With Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC) building a wafer fab in the German city of Dresden, a Germany-Czech Republic-Poland “silicon triangle” is forming, Kung said in a media interview on the weekend after returning from a visit to Prague. “Prague is closer to Dresden than Berlin is, so Taiwanese firms are expected to take advantage of the Czech capital’s location,” he said. “Taiwan and Prague have already launched direct flights and it is