quantum computers are not yet widely available in the commercial market for general-purpose computing. While significant progress has been made in the development of quantum computing technologies, practical, large-scale quantum computers are still in the research and development phase.
However, there are companies and research institutions that offer access to cloud-based quantum computing services, allowing users to experiment and run quantum algorithms on actual quantum hardware. These services provide a way for researchers, developers, and businesses to explore and gain hands-on experience with quantum computing without the need to build their own quantum hardware.
Companies such as IBM (with IBM Quantum), Google (with Google Quantum Computing), Microsoft (with Azure Quantum), and several startups like Rigetti and IonQ offer cloud-based access to their quantum computing platforms. These platforms provide access to small-scale quantum processors, typically with tens or hundreds of qubits.
It's worth noting that the current quantum processors available on these platforms are still in the Noisy Intermediate-Scale Quantum (NISQ) era. NISQ computers have a limited number of qubits and relatively short coherence times, making them susceptible to errors. These devices are primarily used for exploring quantum algorithms, error mitigation techniques, and developing quantum software.
While progress is being made towards more powerful and fault-tolerant quantum computers, it is important to recognize that quantum computing technology is still in its early stages, and it will likely take more time before practical, large-scale quantum computers are commercially available.