India enters quantum era: Andhra CM Naidu launches country's first sovereign 'hardware ecosystem' in Amaravati

Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu on Tuesday launched a quantum reference facility with the aim of building India's "first sovereign hardware ecosystem" and accelerating indigenous manufacturing of advanced computing systems. The facility has been launched at a private college in the greenfield capital city, dedicating the AQRF, which comprises Amaravati 1S and Amaravati 1Q, to the nation.

According to the PTI, the systems are developed under the Amaravati Quantum Valley initiative, marking India's "first indigenously built" open-access quantum computers, designed, assembled, and tested within the country with a supply chain spanning multiple institutions.

Amaravati, a key global hub for quantum technology

Unveiled on World Quantum Day, the launch is set to establish Amaravati as a key global hub for quantum technology and a central node in a future nationwide quantum network. The Amaravati Quantum Reference Facility serves as India’s national platform for testing quantum hardware, enabling validation, benchmarking, and certification of components under real-world conditions.

The facility addresses a critical global challenge, where access to quantum hardware is often limited, expensive, or opaque, restricting India's ability to test and develop its own components. The facility, AQRF, will provide a fully equipped platform for researchers, startups, and industry to directly access and evaluate components such as processors, cryogenic systems, amplifiers, and control electronics.

The initiative is set up with a main focus on the domestic supply chain, covering nearly 85 per cent of its parts manufactured in India, marking the "first time a full-stack quantum system" has been assembled within the country, the press release said.

The facility also seeks to challenge global dominance in key subsystems such as dilution refrigerators, control electronics, and precision hardware. The project has been carried out by a consortium including the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, the Indian Institute of Science, the Defence Research and Development Organisation, among others, which served as the system integrator.