The Barcelona Supercomputing Center – Centro Nacional de Supercomputación (BSC-CNS) has presented its third quantum computer, EuroQCS-Spain, co-financed by the European Commission and the Government of Spain through the State Secretariat for Digitalization and Artificial Intelligence (SEDIA). Thanks to an analog coding of information, the new system brings a complementary quantum technology to the one previously installed at the center and will be available to researchers, industry, and public administrations across Europe.
With this addition, MareNostrum 5 becomes one of the first supercomputers in the world to combine classical computing (with general-purpose and accelerated partitions) and digital and analog quantum computing (with the two quantum computers installed by the Quantum Spain project and SEDIA , and this latest one, respectively).
This new quantum system will be part of the European network of quantum computers in the European High Performance Computing Joint Undertaking (EuroHPC JU) infrastructure which has, to date, procured six quantum computers located across Europe, four of which (Poland, Czechia, Germany and France) have already been inaugurated. These technologies are key to the European Quantum Strategy , which aims to make Europe a world leader in this field by 2030 and consolidate Europe's technological sovereignty, industrial competitiveness, and security.
The installation, with a total cost of 9.8 million euros, is co-funded by the EuroHPC Joint Undertaking and the Secretariat of State for Digitalization and Artificial Intelligence (SEDIA) of the Ministry of Digital Transformation and Public Administration, which is contributing 4.8 million euros. It has been carried out in the renovated Torre Girona chapel, where the BSC had installed the first four versions of MareNostrum. Of the total investment, 8.5 million euros went toward installing the machines—with 50% co-financing split between the EuroHPC Joint Undertaking and the Spanish government, complemented with a contribution from Portugal—and the remainder toward its integration, that is, combining the quantum machine with the classical infrastructure.
After months of renovation work, the iconic chapel now offers a new appearance to visitors. Its neoclassical architecture is iconically connected with the technological cutting edge of the three quantum computers that make up MareNostrum Ona, which occupies one third of the chapel, leaving the rest of the space for upgrading the artificial intelligence capabilities of MareNostrum 5.
The new quantum computer was presented today, in an event held at the Torre Girona chapel and featured the presence of Mateo Valero, Director of BSC; Francesc Torres, Rector Magnificus of the Polytechnic University of Catalonia (UPC); María González Veracruz, Secretary of State for Digitalization and Artificial Intelligence of the Government of Spain; Juan Cruz Cigudosa, Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Universities of the Government of Spain; Núria Montserrat, Minister of the Department of Research and Universities of the Government of Catalonia; Óscar Díez, Head of the Quantum Computing at the European Commission; Daniel Opalka, Head of R&D at EuroHPC JU; Marta Estarellas, CEO of Qilimanjaro Quantum Tech.
Pending the integration of the newly installed system, the quantum partition of MareNostrum 5, MareNostrum Ona, has consolidated its operational status, reaching 4,200 computing hours granted since its inauguration in February 2025. This activity has been structured through two official calls of the Spanish Supercomputing Network (RES), launched in July and December of last year, enabling the execution of 53 research projects to date and optimizing the performance of the infrastructure in just over one year of service.
From the design of the chip to the programming of the software necessary for its use, the entire development process of the new quantum computer was carried out by the Catalan company Qilimanjaro Quantum Tech, in collaboration with Do It Now, having delegated only the physical manufacturing phase of the chip, made in Gothenburg, Sweden.
This new computer thus achieves a milestone for the Catalan, Spanish, and European technological ecosystem, and represents a further step on the path toward technological sovereignty followed by EuroHPC and BSC, reinforcing European autonomy and aligning with the European Commission's strategy to reduce dependence on key infrastructures from third countries.
MareNostrum Ona is configured, then, with two digital quantum computers and one analog, all of them with superconducting quantum bit (qubit) technology. The former use Transmon Qubits, while the new system incorporates Fluxonium Qubits, an innovative quantum technology that, thanks to its analog processing of information, will help solve certain problems more efficiently as compared to digital processing.
The difference between the two technologies, contrary to what digital and analog terminology might suggest regarding the novelty of each, lies in how they process information: while the digital system is based on small steps and pulses made at specific moments, the analog one performs a continuous modulation, especially useful for analyzing more dynamic and changing systems. That is to say, the digital system would be like climbing stairs or reading time on a digital clock, with separate steps or numbers, while the analog one would be like going up a ramp or reading an analog clock, with continuous information throughout the process.
In this way, the digital quantum computers of MareNostrum Ona are suitable for solving mathematical problems, cryptography, or search algorithms (such as Shor or Grover), and the new analog system will serve to address optimization of logistical problems, Quantum Machine Learning and the training of AI models.
With this technological hybridization, BSC will have two distinct approaches to problem-solving with quantum technology, providing unique tools for advanced research and innovation, and favoring the development of applications of great industrial, scientific, and social relevance throughout Europe.