BCBusiness

14 BCBusiness DECEMBER 2015 computing works. The DˆWave quantum computer, says Furs- man, uses "the laziness of the universe" as its core operating principle: "The universe likes to conserve ener˜y when it's doing things. It's why raindrops end up in a sphere—because it's the shape that minimizes the amount of surface ten- sion necessary to keep a ball together." In DˆWave machines, the pieces are called quantum bits—or qubits. Unlike binary bits, which alternate between 1 and 0, qubits utilize a super- position: both 1 and 0 at the same time. Whereas a classic computer might run a thousand tests—rearranging 1s and 0s over and over again—before telling you which test went fastest, the DˆWave machine searches for the fastest solution in one go. 1QBit now works with com- panies that want to "stay ahead of the curve," according to Fursman—helping big develop- ers build software that, with only a few nips and tucks and using the same code, can run on a DˆWave machine potentially far faster than it ever could on a classical computer. Fursman says that nondisclosure agreements prevent him from discussing the companies with which they work, but among them is a Fortune 50 †rm. Each project takes maybe six months, and 1QBit doesn't say yes to everything (as Fursman puts its, "the hammer"—a DˆWave machine—must be right for "the nail," the client). Quantum computing is particularly good at complex pattern recognition, explains Fursman, and one project they have on the go compares mol- ecules in new drugs: "Similarly shaped molecules have similar e‡ects, so if you build some- thing you think is going to be a pretty good cure for heart disease but has a similar shape to something known to cause cancer, that's a good cause for F or a good example of what it means to bootstrap, consider the case of Matt Phillips. In 2001, the then-27-year-old decided he wanted to open his own brewery and went to several banks in search of help. They refused to give him a loan, so he maxed out every credit card he could get his hands on. He lived in the small Esquimalt brewery for the †rst couple of years, showering at a nearby ˜ym, and did everything him- self: he was brewer, keg washer, salesman and deliveryman. From those humble origins, Phillips has turned his epony- mous Victoria-based brewery into one of B.C.'s largest craft breweries, selling to more than 600 accounts across Canada. In 2012, Phillips also began selling its own sodas, and in 2014 launched a distillery, the Fermentorium, which produces boutique Stump Gin and Hop Drop Elixir hop liqueur. Whisky is currently aging in barrels for the minimum three years before it can be sold. And as of Septem- ber, the 53-employee company is in the malting business, after opening its own maltworks behind the brewery. For Phillips, getting into malt- ing is all about getting closer to the raw ingredients that go into his products. "You can't make great beer without great ingredi- ents," he says. About 25 smaller- scale maltsters have recently emerged in North America, and another 20 or 30 are in plan- ning, but no other brewery in Canada malts its own grains. Captain Phillips B.C.'s preeminent craft brewer expands his local footprint with a new maltworks by Joe Wiebe M a n u f a c t u r i n g concern." The same technolo˜y, he adds, can then be tweaked to detect, say, patterns in money laundering, among other things. For both the scienti†c and corporate world, the verdict on DˆWave's quantum computers is still out—although that hasn't stopped the likes of Google, NASA and Lockheed Martin from buying into DˆWave's technol- o˜y (at $15 million a computer). In another boost to the local quantum scene's credibility, in August 1QBit was recognized by the World Economic Forum (the group famous for its annual high- §ying winter retreat in Davos, Switzerland) as one of its top tech pioneers for 2015. It was the only Canadian company on a list of 49. Even the risk-adverse federal government thinks there's promise: in July, UBC received an unprecedented $66.5-million investment from the Canada First Research Excellence Fund for its Quantum Matter Institute—the largest-ever government invest- ment in a UBC research program. Certainly for Fursman and his company, it's heady times: 1QBit has grown from two to 30 employees (almost all of them with PhDs) in less than three years. Indeed, the fast-growing out†t is already too big for its premises; this fall, 1QBit was in the process of moving from its tiny concrete oce on West Hastings to bigger, brighter digs in Vancouver's prime oce address, Bentall 5. The bene†ts of this burgeon- ing industry extend far beyond 1QBit and DˆWave, in Fursman's estimation. Computers are inte- gral to every type of business, he says as our interview concludes and he prepares for a §ight the next day to Dalian, China, where he will receive his World Economic Forum award. And the need for computing speed has never been greater. "The breakthroughs made here are going to trickle down to so many di‡erent industries." A Brief History of QuAntum Computing in B.C. 1999 D-Wave launched as an offshoot of UBC 2007 D-Wave's Orion prototype released 2011 D-Wave One, the com- pany's ˆrst commercial computer, released and sold to Lockheed Martin for $10 million 2012 D-Wave Two revealed. 1QBit founded 2013 $15- million machine sold to Google and NASA. D-Wave moves to Burnaby 2014 Formal partnership between D-Wave and 1QBit announced 2015 D-Wave 2X revealed. 1QBit recognized by the World Economic Forum $10 million 2012 D-Wave

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