About us
Where it all began
qool was born from the necessity to manage large constellations of stratospheric balloons autonomously and optimally, a use case directly stemming from the startup Involve Space. Claudio Piazzai and Raoul Vetere, the current CEO and CAIO of qool, conceived the idea to explore how quantum algorithms could be applied to the aerospace sector, particularly for autonomous navigation, driven by a problem encountered at Involve Space.
Involve Space develops stratospheric pseudosatellite platforms aimed at creating constellations of these balloons to deliver unprecedented quality in Earth observation services. However, the balloons must operate completely autonomously, and as their numbers grow, the complexity of the AI algorithms managing them increases exponentially. These balloons navigate the stratosphere by exploiting different wind currents at various altitudes, much like sailboats, changing altitude as necessary. A complex AI system predicts wind patterns and instructs actuators on when and how to change altitude to complete specific tasks. This process involves solving numerous differential equations, which become too complex for classical algorithms to handle in real-time as the number of balloons increases.
The idea
Driven by the need to maintain real-time autonomous navigation for the balloons and optimize the constellation configuration while minimizing the number of balloons needed to monitor specific geographic areas for Earth observation, Claudio Piazzai, COO of Involve Space, and Raoul Vetere explored beyond classical technologies into quantum computing. Their belief that quantum computing will bring a revolution comparable to AI in the next decade led to the creation of a new startup, spun off from Involve Space. qool's mission is to develop state-of-the-art quantum algorithms to provide immediate advantages in optimizing complex control problems. The vision is to become the leading player in the Quantum AI sector within ten years.
Our partnership with Involve Space has allowed us to work on a real-world use case from the very beginning, accelerating our growth as a startup. This collaboration not only provides us with practical applications but also enables us to scale more quickly. Additionally, the algorithms developed by qool are generalizable to various types of vehicles (satellites, self-driving cars, robots, drones) and applicable across different industries facing optimal control problems (finance, chemistry, logistics).
Who we are
qool is dedicated to developing quantum-inspired and AI algorithms to solve optimization problems too complex for classical approaches, which would take too long or be outright impossible to solve otherwise. Currently, qool specializes in quantum and digital annealing, a subset of adiabatic quantum computing, with a high TRL (Technology Readiness Level) to deliver benefits even in the current NISQ (Noisy Intermediate-Scale Quantum) era. Specifically, qool takes classical algorithms related to optimal control problems (a mathematical field where we have significant expertise due to our experience in classical autonomous navigation and aerospace with Involve Space) and reformulates them into QUBO or PUBO formats. These can be solved using both simulated and real quantum approaches, providing performance far superior to their classical equivalents and enabling the solution of currently unsolvable problems.
The team
Our team is a dynamic and diverse group of experts from Denmark, Italy, Peru, Spain, and Germany, unified by a common goal: solving complex optimization problems that classical computing cannot efficiently address. qool's team comprises around 15 high-level experts in AI, applied mathematics, optimal control, quantum computing, and business development.
Our team is a dynamic and diverse group of experts from Denmark, Italy, Peru, Spain, and Germany, unified by a common goal: solving complex optimization problems that classical computing cannot efficiently address. qool's team comprises around 15 high-level experts in AI, applied mathematics, optimal control, quantum computing, and business development.
At qool, we are committed to pioneering advancements in quantum computing and AI to transform the way complex problems are solved, pushing the boundaries of what is possible.
Are you interested?
Reach out to us about anything you have in mind