French firms C12 and Thales have unveiled QuantumTrack, a hybrid quantum-classical system designed for real-time radar target tracking. The project is currently at technology readiness level TRL 5, having been tested on the Callisto emulator, which simulates a 20-qubit processor.
The system addresses the Multiple Hypothesis Tracking challenge by offloading the selection of compatible hypotheses to a quantum annealer. This approach allows the system to process data at speeds comparable to top-tier classical algorithms while outperforming other quantum annealers by approximately 100 times.
Developers estimate that the full cycle of the QuantumTrack protocol could take about 50 milliseconds. The project recently received the 2026 Quantum Effects Award in the quantum computing hardware category, marking a significant milestone for the collaboration.
Future plans involve transitioning to a physical C12 processor and reaching TRL 6. Thales will serve as the system integrator, focusing on applications in air defense and drone traffic management, while C12 continues the development of the quantum annealer for large-scale optimization.
