Welcome to the Era of TensorFlow and PyTorch Enabled Quantum Computer Simulators

In my previous blog post, I unveiled a new Jupyter notebook explaining how to use Qubiter (a quantum computing simulator managed by me) to do hybrid quantum-classical (HQC) quantum computing. In that prior blog post, I admitted that even though that meant that Qubiter could now do a naive type of HQC, Qubiter could not yet do fully fledged HQC, which I defined as (1) using distributed computing/back propagation driven by TensorFlow or PyTorch (2) using as backend a physical qc device such as those which are already accessible via the cloud, thanks to IBM and Rigetti. I pointed out that the wonderful software PennyLane by Xanadu can now do (1) and (2).

This blog post is to unveil yet another Jupyter notebook, this time showing how to use Qubiter to translate potentially any quantum circuit written in Qubiter’s language to the language of PennyLane, call it Pennylanese. This means Qubiter can now act as a front end to PennyLane, PennyLane can act as an intermediary link which is TensorFlow and PyTorch enabled, and Rigetti’s or IBM’s qc hardware can act as the backend.

So, in effect, Qubiter can now do (1) and (2). Here is the notebook

https://github.com/artiste-qb-net/qubiter/blob/master/qubiter/jupyter_notebooks/Translating_from_Qubiter_to_Xanadu_PennyLane.ipynb

I, Nostradamucci, have been prognosticating the merging of quantum computing and TensorFlow for a long time in this blog

I, Nostradamucci, foresee that PennyLane will continue to improve and be adopted by many other qc simulators besides Qubiter. Those other qc simulators will be modified by their authors so that they too can act as frontends to PennyLane. Why not do it? It took me just a few days to write the Qubiter2PennyLane translator. You can easily do the same for your qc simulator!

I, Nostradamucci, also foresee that many competitors to PennyLane will crop up in the next year. It would be very naive to expect that everyone will adopt PennyLane as their method of achieving (1) and (2).

In particular, Google will want to write their own (1)(2) tool. Just like Google didn’t adopt someone else’s quantum simulator, they started Cirq instead, it would be naive to expect that they would adopt PennyLane as their (1) (2) tool, especially since TensorFlow is their prized, scepter of power. Just like Google rarely adopts someone else’s app for Android, they write their own, Google rarely adopts someone else’s app for TensorFlow (and Cirq, and OpenFermion), they write their own.

And of course, the Chinese (and the independence-loving French, Vive La France!) prefer to use software that is not under the control of American monopolies.

I see PennyLane as a brilliant but temporary solution that allows Qubiter to achieve (1) and (2) right now, today. But if Google provides a (1)(2) tool in the future, I will certainly modify Qubiter to support Google’s tool too.

In short, welcome to the era of TensorFlow and PyTorch Enabled Quantum Computer Simulators.