AQT and the EIC Accelerator: Ion-Trap Quantum Computers Deliver
Alpine Quantum Technologies, an Innsbruck spin-off registered in 2018, builds quantum computers that use trapped ions as qubits and fit in standard 19-inch server racks. Its PINE system runs at room temperature and uses under 2 kilowatts, the company said in February 2023, when it reported a quantum volume of 128, the highest then claimed for a European device.
The European Innovation Council granted €2,500,000 towards QCDC, a €3.7 million project from April 2023 to March 2025 to bring quantum computers into data centres. AQT's award announcement mentioned the grant "combined with equity investments through the EIC Fund". The final report describes "the first cloud service in Europe" offering a universal trapped-ion quantum computer in a 19-inch rack over the internet. In June 2025 AQT's machine in Poznań was inaugurated as PIAST-Q, the first EuroHPC quantum computer.
Company file
- Legal entity
- Alpine Quantum Technologies GmbH, FN 484886v, Innsbruck
- Registered
- 26 January 2018
- CEO
- Thomas Monz
- Co-founder
- Rainer Blatt
- Products
- PINE, IBEX and LYNX trapped-ion quantum computers; cloud access
- Shareholders
- Include the Austrian research agency FFG and the University of Innsbruck
- EIC project
- QCDC, 1 Apr 2023 to 31 Mar 2025
Where AQT Stands Now
Since the project, AQT's news records its IBEX Q1 computer going live on Amazon Braket in November 2025 and on Scaleway's cloud in February 2026, core membership of the €50 million P4Q European quantum pilot, a role in the CHAMP-ION European ion-trap chip pilot line, and in September 2026 selection as one of seven partners in a €122 million German quantum computing programme. In May 2026 it reported a quantum volume of 32,768 for its LYNX series. It does not publish revenue.
The record
From Innsbruck lab to Europe's quantum infrastructure
AQT's EIC project built a European cloud service for its trapped-ion quantum computers. Since then it has delivered a EuroHPC machine and joined large European and German programmes.
- Jan 2018Company registeredInnsbruck spin-off
- Aug 2019InvestmentFFG and University of Innsbruck€10M
- Feb 2023Quantum volume 128Highest then reported for a European device
- Apr 2023EIC project startsQCDC: quantum computers for data centres€2.50M grant
- Mar 2025EIC project endsCloud access to trapped-ion computers in 19-inch racks
- Jun 2025PIAST-Q inauguratedFirst EuroHPC quantum computer, in Poznań
- Nov 2025Amazon BraketIBEX Q1 available on AWS
- May 2026Quantum volume 32,768LYNX series, per AQT
AQT, CORDIS and North Data.
"The EIC funding enables AQT to make European quantum computing superior and more readily available to international customers."
Thomas Monz, CEO, AQT, November 2022The Technology: Ions in a Rack
AQT traps charged atoms and manipulates them with lasers to perform quantum operations. QCDC covered the full stack, from hardware to applications, and three partnerships: Quanscient in Finland for multiphysics simulation, T-Systems in Germany for cloud integration and Classiq in Israel. The report says proof-of-concept use cases in molecular structure, biochemistry and factory optimisation were published in peer-reviewed journals.
The performance
Quantum volume reported by AQT
Quantum volume combines qubit number, error rates and connectivity. Figures as announced by AQT.
AQT, February 2023 and May 2026.
What the EIC Project Promised, and What CORDIS Shows
The EIC project
The EU paid 68% of a €3.7M project
QCDC ran from April 2023 to March 2025. CORDIS still lists it as signed.
CORDIS project 190118992. Values in € millions.
QCDC promised quantum computers usable in data centres and accessible remotely. It delivered a cloud service validated by academic and industrial users and, by AQT's account, the best quantum volume on a European device at the time. The company announced the project's conclusion in September 2025. CORDIS still lists it as signed.
- Cloud quantum serviceDeliveredPer final report.
- Data-centre hardwareDelivered19-inch rack systems.
- Industrial partnersSignedQuanscient, T-Systems, Classiq.
- Commercial scaleUnpublishedNo revenue figures.
The pipeline
Programmes AQT has joined since the EIC project
Total size of each programme in € millions, as announced. AQT's own share is not disclosed.
AQT news, February and September 2026.
The Money
In 2019 the FFG and the University of Innsbruck invested €10 million, according to AQT. It has not published a later funding round or the size of any EIC Fund investment, and its Austrian accounts, filed up to 2024, are not freely displayed, according to North Data. Many of its recent announcements concern publicly funded programmes and procurements.
What Cannot Be Checked
Questions for the EIC
AQT's revenue, whether and how much the EIC Fund invested, and AQT's share of the P4Q and German programmes are not public.
Why Europe Should Care
AQT's machine was the first EuroHPC quantum computer to be inaugurated. The EIC project helped it turn laboratory systems into a service others can use.
What the project promised
Trapped-ion quantum computers ready for data centres and available through the cloud.
What the record shows
A European cloud service, a EuroHPC machine in Poland, AWS access and roles in major European programmes.
The Verdict
A clear delivery
AQT did what the EIC paid for and has kept building on it. It has won places in public programmes, but its revenue and its share of those programmes are not public.
AQT and the EIC have not been asked for comment for this article. It is based entirely on public records and published statements, linked throughout.
Industry
Digital and computingQuantum technology
- Focus
- Quantum computers
- Technologies
- Quantum hardware
- Lasers
- Keywords
- Quantum cloud services
- High-performance computing centres
- EuroHPC
- Rack-mounted quantum computers
- Trapped ions