What Is Helios Quantum, Its Features & How Does Helios Work
Helios
A next-generation trapped-ion quantum computer, Quantinuum's H-Series is called the "Helios Quantum." In 2025, it will launch as a full-stack platform to set a new standard.
How Helios Works
Helios Quantum qubits are trapped ions. Process has numerous steps:
Trapping the Ions: In a vacuum container, electric and magnetic fields separate ions from their surroundings.
Creating Qubits: Trapped ions' intrinsic energy states are represented by ∣1⟩ and ∣0⟩ as qubits.
Qubit control: Lasers control ion states. Laser pulses compute using quantum logic gates like Hadamard and CNOT Gates.
Lasers also enable ion state entanglement, which allows complex multi-qubit computations.
The ions are measured using a laser. The ultimate quantum state depends on glow.
Quantum Helios Features and Functions
For scalability and performance, Helios Quantum has several key components:
Due to their expanding number of qubits, quantum computers with high qubit counts have improved processing capacity.
Precision laser control and a clean environment provide the Helios Quantum system remarkable gate fidelity, or low error rates.
Trapped-ion systems may entangle any qubit with any other, which is extremely useful. Avoiding “qubit swapping” simplifies quantum circuit design and improves performance.
Qubit count, connectivity, and gate quality are utilised to benchmark Helios Quantum. Helios' high Quantum Volume allows it to run more complex algorithms. May 2025 saw a record Quantum Volume of 8,388,608 (2^23) for Quantinuum's old system, H2.
New Software Stack Integration
New software stack integration Together with Helios Quantum, a new software stack will remove access hurdles, speed up solutions, and improve user experience. The updated stack has:
Guppy, a new, open-source programming language, is based on Python, a popular classical computing language. Gate-by-gate development is arduous and error-prone, whereas Guppy treats quantum programs as dynamic, organised software. It supports real-time feedback and ‘if’ statements and ‘for’ loops.
Helios-simulating open-source emulator Selene. Selene is Helios' "digital sister," containing its advanced runtime features like hybrid quantum-classical logic and measurement-dependent control flow. It executes Guppy programs out of the box, so developers can build and test without hardware access. Selene hosts cuQuantum and NVIDIA GPU simulation backends.
Helios and third-party devices are still accessible by default on Quantinuum's cloud-based SaaS platform. Updated Nexus supports Guppy and Selene. In a cloud-native SaaS full-stack system, it connects all stack components. This platform allows collaboration, Guppy program management, and results analysis.
TKET: TKET, a middleware technology for quantum software applications, will henceforth only be used as a compiler toolchain and for Guppy program optimisation.
With Nexus and Selene supporting Quantum Intermediate Representation (QIR), users can program in their favourite languages like NVIDIA CUDA-Q, Microsoft Q#, and ORNL XACC.
Advantages of Helios Quantum
Users can benefit from Helios Quantum and its revolutionary software stack in many ways.
With Guppy's Python basis, more developers can use quantum programming.
The integrated stack, real-time control, and powerful algorithms speed up time-to-solution.
Improvements in Quantum Error Correction (QEC): Guppy's adaptive technique allows developers to apply quantum teleportation and magic state distillation codes. Modularity accelerates fault-tolerance. The stack supports atypical QEC and NVIDIA CUDA-QX.
The Helios' next-generation control system and groundbreaking real-time engine allow quantum measurements to dynamically steer activities. Adjustable, fault-tolerant algorithms and scalability from thousands to millions of qubits require this.
Reduced Memory Error: Utility-scale algorithms and quantum error correction benefit from reduced memory error.
Trapped ions' strong isolation from ambient noise allows them to maintain their quantum state for longer periods of time, allowing longer algorithm execution.
Helios Quantum Uses
Helios' all-to-all link and high-fidelity qubits allow it to be utilised for:
Chemists and materials scientists simulate chemical interactions to create new batteries, catalysts, and drugs.
Risk analysis and portfolio optimisation using complex financial modelling simulations.
Supply chain management and vehicle routing are difficult optimisation problems.
Simulating chemical processes and protein folding speeds drug discovery.
Helios Quantum cons
Helios and other trapped-ion devices have problems despite benefits:
Building and maintaining the hardware, which involves powerful lasers, complex suction systems, and cutting-edge cooling technologies, is tough and expensive.
Speed: Trapped-ion quantum gates are slower than superconducting quantum computers.
Even with all-to-all communication, capturing and maintaining a large number of ions in a single system makes high-scale production problematic.
Helios Quantum Prospects
Helios' new software stack is designed for the future as Quantinuum advances towards ubiquitous, fault-tolerant quantum computing. The startup seeks to help turn computational improvements into real-world applications. Its integrated full-stack method enables scalable, programmable, real-time quantum computing, making Quantinuum a leader in quantum computing.
