November 24, 2025
Quantum or just window dressing?
You can see a working Quantum Computer in IBM's London office
Behind glass at Waterloo: is IBM’s “quantum” live or just window dressing
TLDR: IBM’s London office shows off a quantum computer behind glass, billed as live and working. Commenters are split: skeptics point to missing super‑cold gear and call it a showpiece, while others note IBM’s track record of displaying real systems—turning the window into a is‑it‑real debate worth watching.
Londoners are pressing noses to glass on York Road to glimpse IBM’s gleaming Quantum System One—think sci‑fi chandelier meets mega‑freezer—touted as “live and in use”. The hype: quantum machines can juggle 0 and 1 at the same time, promising speed‑ups on monster math. The catch: they only behave if kept almost as cold as outer space. IBM says this one is running, cooled and serving real work, right there in Waterloo.
Cue the comments section going full particle accelerator. The top clapback claims the display can’t be live because it’s missing the super‑chiller—called a “dilution fridge,” basically a deep‑freeze—and its shiny heat shields: “not ‘live and in use’ without its dilution fridge,” snapped one skeptic. Another cracked, “it’ll get a bit hot with its clothes off,” turning cryogenics into couture. Meme lords chimed in with Half‑Life energy—“This could cause a resonance cascade”—and a cheeky quantum zinger: “just don’t observe it reeeally closely.” But not everyone yelled “prop!” One commenter says IBM has a history of putting actual working systems on display in cities like New York and Toronto. So the vibe became a classic internet showdown: future‑of‑computing demo vs museum‑grade window dressing. Want to peek behind the curtain? Start here: IBM Quantum System One and a plain‑English what is quantum.
Key Points
- •IBM is displaying an IBM Quantum System One at its London Waterloo office, visible through a glass window from outside.
- •IBM Quantum System One, launched in January 2019, is described as the first circuit-based commercial quantum computer.
- •The system uses quantum principles allowing qubits to be both 0 and 1 simultaneously, enabling faster performance for certain calculations.
- •Quantum computers require cryogenic cooling near absolute zero to maintain their quantum state and operate reliably.
- •The display was created with Map Project Office, Universal Design Studio, and Goppion, and the office is located on York Road near Waterloo Station.