Zapata AI Earns Second DARPA Award for Quantum Benchmarking

Rhea-AI Summary

Zapata Computing, Inc. (Zapata AI) has been selected for the second phase of the DARPA Quantum Benchmarking program, receiving a multi-million-dollar award to develop open-source tools for high-value industrial applications of quantum computing. The company is collaborating with academic and technology partners to identify the resources required to deliver quantum applications with high utility for industrial problems.

Working closely with partners in industry and academia, the Phase II Award will develop open-source tools to estimate the resources required for high-value industrial applications of quantum computing.

BOSTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Zapata Computing, Inc. (“Zapata AI” or the “Company”), the Industrial Generative AI software company developing solutions and applications to solve enterprises’ hardest problems, today announced that the company, along with several academic and technology partners, has been selected as an awardee for the second phase of the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) Quantum Benchmarking program. Zapata AI is a participant in both Technical Area 1 and Technical Area 2 of the program. The multi-year, multi-million-dollar award will help the quantum computing community identify the resources required to deliver quantum applications with high utility for industrial problems.

The Phase II award builds on the Phase I award granted to the same group of collaborators in 2022. Where the Phase I award was focused on building BenchQ — an open-source tool for benchmarking quantum computing applications — and demonstrating its value for resource estimation, the Phase II award will focus on improving the tool to increase community adoption. This includes building and maintaining BenchQ software integrations and broadening the applicability to additional use cases. The work will identify high-value applications, quantify their utility, and estimate the resources required to unlock that utility across multiple quantum hardware modalities.

Zapata AI’s partners on this initiative include the most highly regarded and visionary experts in the field of quantum computing. The collaboration includes teams from:

• Aalto University (Finland)
• IonQ
• University of Technology Sydney (Australia)
• University of Texas at Dallas
• The effort kicked off earlier this month.

Quotes About the News:

“This Phase II award is an important step forward from our work on Phase I that will move the industry closer to delivering practical applications of quantum computing for industrial-scale problems,” said Alexandru Paler, Assistant Professor of Computer Science at Aalto University. “We’re excited to continue our collaboration and share the tools we’ve developed with the broader quantum computing community.”

"We are proud to be able to continue contributing IonQ's cutting-edge quantum computing architecture and valuable commercial expertise to this important work,” said Jungsang Kim, Chief Technology Officer at IonQ. “This latest DARPA award will help us to better quantify the impact of our quantum hardware across industries and business practices, and assess and improve the timeline to practical commercial advantage.” In addition to the efforts with DARPA, Zapata AI and IonQ also recently announced a new strategic alliance to benchmark Industrial Generative AI techniques on quantum hardware.

“The benchmarking tools we’re developing will shine unprecedented light on the utility of quantum computers and the path to realizing that utility,” said Simon Devitt, Faculty, Center for Quantum Software and Information at University of Technology Sydney. “With this new DARPA award, we aim to give the community a newfound clarity in where we are and where we are going.”

“There has never been a more exciting time to be involved in the quantum computing community” said Joseph S. Friedman, Associate Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering at The University of Texas at Dallas. “These tools developed under the DARPA program will unlock new breakthroughs that bring us closer to a future where quantum computers can unlock real value for applications across industries. We are proud to be a part of the team delivering these valuable tools to the community.”

“We are immensely proud to be able to continue our collaboration with the U.S. government and our partners on the DARPA quantum benchmarking project.” said Christopher Savoie, CEO of Zapata AI. “Quantum computing has always been a part of our DNA, and it’s through quantum research like this that we’ve been able to unlock advantages for generative AI that we can deliver for customers today. We expect our collaboration with DARPA and our research partners will continue to unlock breakthroughs that we can eventually commercialize to help enterprise customers solve their hardest problems.”

BenchQ is now available as an open-source tool and can be accessed here.

About Zapata AI

Zapata AI is the Industrial Generative AI company, revolutionizing how enterprises solve their hardest problems with its powerful suite of Generative AI software. By combining numerical and text-based solutions, Zapata AI empowers enterprises to leverage large language models and numerical generative models better, faster, and more efficiently—delivering solutions to drive growth, savings and unprecedented insight. With proprietary science and engineering techniques and the Orquestra® platform, Zapata AI is accelerating Generative AI’s impact in Industry. The Company was founded in 2017 and is headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts. To learn more, visit: https://www.zapata.ai. On September 6, 2023, Zapata AI entered into a definitive business combination agreement with Andretti Acquisition Corp. (NYSE: WNNR), the consummation of which, subject to customary closing conditions, will result in Zapata AI becoming a publicly listed company on the New York Stock Exchange.

Forward-Looking Statements

Certain statements made herein are not historical facts but are forward-looking statements for purposes of the safe harbor provisions under The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements generally are accompanied by words such as “believe,” “may,” “will,” “estimate,” “continue,” “anticipate,” “intend,” “expect,” “should,” “would,” “plan,” “predict,” “potential,” “seem,” “seek,” “future,” “outlook,” and similar expressions that predict or indicate future events or trends or that are not statements of historical matters. These forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, statements regarding future events, the transaction, the estimated or anticipated future results and benefits of the combined company following the transaction, including the likelihood and ability of the parties to successfully consummate the transaction, future opportunities for the combined company, and other statements that are not historical facts. These statements are based on the current expectations of Andretti Acquisition Corp.’s and Zapata’s management and are not predictions of actual performance. These forward-looking statements are provided for illustrative purposes only and are not intended to serve as, and must not be relied on, by any investor as a guarantee, an assurance, a prediction, or a definitive statement of fact or probability. Actual events and circumstances are difficult or impossible to predict and will differ from assumptions. Many actual events and circumstances are beyond the control of Andretti Acquisition Corp. and Zapata. These statements are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties regarding Zapata’s businesses and the transaction, and actual results may differ materially. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, ability to meet the closing conditions to the transaction, including approval by stockholders of Andretti Acquisition Corp. on the expected terms and schedule and the risk that regulatory approvals required for the transaction are not obtained or are obtained subject to conditions that are not anticipated; delay in closing the transaction or failure to close the transaction within the period permitted under its governing documents; failure to realize the benefits expected from the proposed transaction; a decline in the price of Andretti Acquisition Corp’s securities following the transaction if it fails to meet the expectations of investors or securities analysts; the amount of redemption requests made by Andretti Acquisition Corp.’s public stockholders; the ability of Andretti Acquisition Corp. or the combined company to issue equity or equity-linked securities in connection with the transaction or in the future; the effects of pending and future legislation; risks related to disruption of management time from ongoing business operations due to the proposed transaction; business disruption following the transaction; risks related to Andretti Acquisition Corp.’s and Zapata’s indebtedness; other consequences associated with mergers, acquisitions, and divestitures and legislative and regulatory actions and reforms; Zapata’s ability to maintain its current rate of growth; maintenance and renewal of customer contracts and subscriptions; competition in Zapata’s industries; Zapata’s ability to raise additional capital; the successful integration of potential targets, products, or technologies; Zapata’s ability to improve its operational, financial, and management controls; Zapata’s failure to maintain and enhance awareness of its brand; increased costs associated with being a public company; cybersecurity incidents; ability to prevent fraudulent activities by Zapata’s customers, employees, or other third parties; potential interruptions or delays in third-party services; protection of proprietary rights; intellectual property infringement, data protection, and other losses; compliance with federal, state, and local laws as well as statutory and regulatory requirements; risks of implementing controls and procedures required for public companies following the transaction; and the ability of Zapata or the combined company to issue equity or equity-linked securities with the proposed business combination or in the future; and those factors discussed in Andretti Acquisition Corp.’s Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2022, under Risk Factors in Part I, Item 1A and other documents of Andretti Acquisition Corp. filed, or to be filed, with the SEC.

If any of these risks materialize or if assumptions prove incorrect, actual results could differ materially from the results implied by these forward-looking statements. There may be additional risks that Andretti Acquisition Corp. or Zapata presently do not know or that Andretti Acquisition Corp. or Zapata currently believe are immaterial that could also cause actual results to differ from those contained in the forward-looking statements. In addition, forward-looking statements provide Andretti Acquisition Corp.’s or Zapata’s expectations, plans, or forecasts of future events and views as of the date of this communication. Andretti Acquisition Corp. or Zapata anticipate that subsequent events and developments will cause their assessments to change. However, while Andretti Acquisition Corp. or Zapata may elect to update these forward-looking statements at some point in the future, Andretti Acquisition Corp. or Zapata specifically disclaim any obligation to do so. These forward-looking statements should not be relied upon as representing Andretti Acquisition Corp.’s or Zapata’s assessments as of any date subsequent to the date of this communication. Accordingly, undue reliance should not be placed upon the forward-looking statements.

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Zapata AI

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Source: Zapata Computing, Inc.

FAQ

What is the Phase II award for Zapata Computing, Inc. (Zapata AI)?

The Phase II award is a multi-year, multi-million-dollar grant that will help the quantum computing community identify the resources required to deliver quantum applications with high utility for industrial problems.

Who are the partners of Zapata Computing, Inc. (Zapata AI) in the DARPA Quantum Benchmarking program?

The partners include Aalto University (Finland), IonQ, University of Technology Sydney (Australia), and University of Texas at Dallas.

What was the focus of the Phase I award granted to Zapata Computing, Inc. (Zapata AI) and its collaborators?

The Phase I award was focused on building BenchQ, an open-source tool for benchmarking quantum computing applications, and demonstrating its value for resource estimation.

What will the Phase II award for Zapata Computing, Inc. (Zapata AI) focus on?

The Phase II award will focus on improving the BenchQ tool to increase community adoption, including building and maintaining BenchQ software integrations and broadening the applicability to additional use cases.

When did the initiative of Zapata Computing, Inc. (Zapata AI) and its partners kick off?

The effort kicked off earlier this month.