Quantum computers and brilliant minds

Today I am celebrating D-Wave for their recent SPAC merger announcement. D-Wave is a quantum computing company with plans to go public via a SPAC (special purpose acquisition company) mechanism. D-Wave will merge with DPCM Capital in a transaction expected to produce $340 million in cash and result in a roughly $1.6 billion initial market valuation.

Steve Jurvestson, a long time techie and investor hero of mine, served on D-Wave’s board for 17 years (2003–2020). Along the way, he’s posted on Rose’s Law, QC wafers, and early systems. He’s also backed iconic companies like Tesla and SpaceX.

Much of quantum computing is still in complicated experimental stages, but some groundbreaking proprietary work has been done and is expected to develop in solving problems much faster than other known types of computers. Quantum computers are expected to have game-changing applications for health, education, transportation, machine learning, and security systems. In theory, quantum computers would be the eventual replacement for all classic hardware systems, so the list of possible applications is very long.

A little background history: On February 13, 2007, D-Wave demonstrated the Orion system as a quantum computing prototype at the Computer History Museum in Mountain View, California. According to Wikipedia, one application was an example of pattern matching, performing a search for a similar compound to a known drug within a database of molecules. D-Wave’s early customers included Lockheed Martin, the University of Southern California, Google/NASA and Los Alamos National Lab.

I believe in what Steve’s brilliant mind sees, and I’m proud of DPCM Capital and D-Wave.

Join the conversation with me on Twitter Shervin Pishevar