Xanadu
Xanadu is a Toronto-based photonic quantum computing company building cloud-accessible continuous- variable quantum processors based on squeezed states of light. Founded in 2016 by Christian Weedbrook and listed on TSX/Nasdaq (XNDU), Xanadu demonstrated a 50-million-fold Gaussian-boson-sampling speedup with Borealis in 2022 and published modular networked photonic quantum computing in Nature in 2025. Beyond hardware, Xanadu is one of the most prolific open-source contributors in quantum software — it maintains PennyLane (the de-facto cross-platform quantum ML framework), Strawberry Fields, MrMustard, The Walrus, Blackbird, Catalyst, Lightning, and FlamingPy, all under Apache-2.0. Xanadu's own Quantum Cloud was retired in January 2026; the company's developer surface is now centered entirely on its open-source stack and integrations with third-party QPUs.
10 APIs
7 Features
Quantum ComputingPhotonic Quantum ComputingQuantum Machine LearningContinuous VariableOpen SourcePythonPennyLaneStrawberry FieldsToronto
Xanadu publishes 10 APIs on the APIs.io network. Tagged areas include Quantum Computing, Photonic Quantum Computing, Quantum Machine Learning, Continuous Variable, and Open Source.
The Xanadu catalog on APIs.io includes 1 JSON-LD context.
Xanadu’s developer surface includes developer portal, documentation, engineering blog, YouTube channel, training material, code examples, release notes, and 11 more developer resources.
PennyLane is the cross-platform Python framework for quantum computing, quantum machine learning, and quantum chemistry maintained by Xanadu. It provides automatic differentiati...
Catalyst is a JIT compiler for hybrid quantum-classical programs written in PennyLane. Built on MLIR, it lowers PennyLane circuits to native machine code with quantum control fl...
Lightning is the family of high-performance state-vector and tensor-network quantum simulators written in C++ for PennyLane. Includes lightning.qubit (CPU), lightning.gpu (CUDA)...
Strawberry Fields is Xanadu's full-stack Python library for designing, simulating, and optimizing continuous-variable (CV) photonic quantum circuits. It ships Gaussian, Fock, Te...
MrMustard is a differentiable quantum-optics simulator that bridges phase space and Fock space with pluggable NumPy and JAX backends. It performs fast exact Fock-amplitude compu...
The Walrus is a Python/C++ library for the fast calculation of hafnians, loop hafnians, and multidimensional Hermite polynomials — the linear-algebra primitives behind Gaussian ...
Blackbird is Xanadu's quantum assembly language and intermediate representation for continuous-variable photonic quantum computation. It is used to program Xanadu's photonic har...
PennyLane plugin that integrates IBM's Qiskit framework and IBM Q hardware as PennyLane devices for differentiable quantum programming. Apache-2.0.
FlamingPy is Xanadu's cross-platform Python library for efficient simulation of error correction in fault-tolerant photonic quantum computers, with a variety of pluggable decode...
Xanadu Cloud Client (xcc) is the Python API and CLI that historically connected users to Xanadu's photonic quantum cloud (Borealis, X-series). Xanadu's Quantum Cloud was retired...
Photonic Quantum Hardware
Continuous-variable photonic quantum processors based on squeezed states of light, including the Borealis Gaussian-boson-sampling device and the Aurora modular system targeting fault-tolerant scaling.
PennyLane Open-Source Framework
Hardware-agnostic Python framework for differentiable quantum programming across PyTorch, JAX, TensorFlow, and NumPy with first-class quantum machine learning and quantum chemistry support.
Plugin Ecosystem
Plugins connect PennyLane to IBM Qiskit, AWS Braket, Google Cirq, IonQ, Rigetti, Microsoft QDK, Quantinuum/Honeywell, Qulacs, and Xanadu's own Strawberry Fields.
Lightning High-Performance Simulators
C++ state-vector and tensor-network simulators with CPU, CUDA GPU, Kokkos, and tensor backends for laptop-to-HPC quantum circuit simulation.
Catalyst JIT Compiler
MLIR-based just-in-time compiler that lowers PennyLane hybrid quantum-classical programs to native code with quantum control flow and end-to-end differentiation.
Photonic Software Stack
Strawberry Fields, MrMustard, The Walrus, Blackbird, and FlamingPy provide continuous-variable simulation, differentiable optics, Gaussian-boson-sampling primitives, an assembly DSL, and fault-tolerant error-correction tooling.
Quantum Codebook and QML Hub
Interactive Xanadu Quantum Codebook plus the pennylane.ai/qml hub with hundreds of research demos covering quantum machine learning, chemistry, and algorithms.
Quantum Machine Learning Research
Train hybrid quantum-classical models with automatic differentiation against simulators and real QPUs through a single PennyLane API.
Quantum Chemistry
Run variational quantum eigensolver and chemistry workflows via pennylane.qchem, including ground state, excited state, and dynamics simulations.
Photonic Algorithm Research
Design continuous-variable algorithms — Gaussian boson sampling, graph optimization, molecular vibronic spectra — in Strawberry Fields and MrMustard.
Fault-Tolerant Architecture Studies
Use FlamingPy to simulate and benchmark photonic fault-tolerant quantum-computing architectures and decoders.
HPC-Scale Quantum Simulation
Run large state-vector and tensor-network simulations on multi-GPU and multi-node clusters with Lightning + Catalyst.
Quantum Education
Teach undergraduates and researchers quantum computing through the Xanadu Quantum Codebook, QHack, and the pennylane.ai demo library.
IBM Qiskit / IBM Quantum
PennyLane-Qiskit plugin exposes IBM Q hardware and Qiskit simulators as PennyLane devices.
AWS Braket
PennyLane plugin for Amazon Braket lets PennyLane circuits run against Braket-managed simulators and partner QPUs.
Google Cirq
PennyLane-Cirq plugin integrates Google's Cirq simulators.
IonQ
PennyLane-IonQ plugin targets IonQ trapped-ion simulators and hardware.
Rigetti
PennyLane-Rigetti plugin connects to Rigetti Forest QPUs and the QVM.
Quantinuum / Honeywell
PennyLane-Honeywell plugin targets Quantinuum's trapped-ion systems.
Microsoft Quantum Development Kit
PennyLane-qsharp plugin connects PennyLane to the Microsoft QDK simulators.
Qulacs
PennyLane-Qulacs plugin provides access to the Qulacs simulator.
PyTorch / JAX / TensorFlow / NumPy
First-class differentiable interfaces for every major Python ML framework.
NVIDIA cuQuantum
Lightning GPU and Lightning Tensor leverage NVIDIA cuQuantum for accelerated simulation.
aid: xanadu
url: https://raw.githubusercontent.com/api-evangelist/xanadu/refs/heads/main/apis.yml
apis:
- aid: xanadu:pennylane
name: PennyLane
tags:
- Quantum Computing
- Quantum Machine Learning
- Open Source
- Python
- Automatic Differentiation
humanURL: https://pennylane.ai
properties:
- url: https://pennylane.ai
type: Portal
- url: https://docs.pennylane.ai/en/stable/
type: Documentation
- url: https://github.com/PennyLaneAI/pennylane
type: GitHubRepository
- url: https://pypi.org/project/PennyLane/
type: SDK
- url: https://pennylane.ai/qml/demonstrations/
type: CodeExamples
- url: https://discuss.pennylane.ai/
type: Forum
- url: json-schema/pennylane-device-schema.json
type: JSONSchema
- url: json-ld/xanadu-context.jsonld
type: JSONLD
description: PennyLane is the cross-platform Python framework for quantum computing, quantum machine learning,
and quantum chemistry maintained by Xanadu. It provides automatic differentiation of hybrid quantum-classical
computations across PyTorch, JAX, TensorFlow, and NumPy with a device-agnostic plugin model so the same
circuit runs against simulators (Lightning, default.qubit) and hardware (IBM Q, IonQ, Rigetti, AWS Braket,
Strawberry Fields). Apache-2.0, latest version 0.45.0 (May 2026), 3.2k+ stars.
- aid: xanadu:catalyst
name: Catalyst
tags:
- Quantum Computing
- Compiler
- JIT
- MLIR
- Open Source
humanURL: https://docs.pennylane.ai/projects/catalyst/en/stable/
properties:
- url: https://docs.pennylane.ai/projects/catalyst/en/stable/
type: Documentation
- url: https://github.com/PennyLaneAI/catalyst
type: GitHubRepository
- url: https://pypi.org/project/PennyLane-Catalyst/
type: SDK
description: Catalyst is a JIT compiler for hybrid quantum-classical programs written in PennyLane. Built on
MLIR, it lowers PennyLane circuits to native machine code with quantum control flow, dynamic shapes, and
differentiable hybrid execution. Apache-2.0.
- aid: xanadu:pennylane-lightning
name: PennyLane Lightning
tags:
- Quantum Computing
- Simulator
- High Performance
- GPU
- Open Source
humanURL: https://docs.pennylane.ai/projects/lightning/en/stable/
properties:
- url: https://docs.pennylane.ai/projects/lightning/en/stable/
type: Documentation
- url: https://github.com/PennyLaneAI/pennylane-lightning
type: GitHubRepository
- url: https://pypi.org/project/PennyLane-Lightning/
type: SDK
description: Lightning is the family of high-performance state-vector and tensor-network quantum simulators
written in C++ for PennyLane. Includes lightning.qubit (CPU), lightning.gpu (CUDA), lightning.kokkos
(multi-architecture), and lightning.tensor backends for accelerated circuit simulation on laptops, GPUs, and
HPC clusters. Apache-2.0.
- aid: xanadu:strawberry-fields
name: Strawberry Fields
tags:
- Quantum Computing
- Photonic
- Continuous Variable
- Simulator
- Open Source
humanURL: https://strawberryfields.readthedocs.io/en/stable/
properties:
- url: https://strawberryfields.readthedocs.io/en/stable/
type: Documentation
- url: https://github.com/XanaduAI/strawberryfields
type: GitHubRepository
- url: https://pypi.org/project/StrawberryFields/
type: SDK
description: Strawberry Fields is Xanadu's full-stack Python library for designing, simulating, and optimizing
continuous-variable (CV) photonic quantum circuits. It ships Gaussian, Fock, TensorFlow, and Bosonic backends
plus end-to-end differentiation for training photonic quantum programs across graph optimization, machine
learning, and quantum chemistry workloads. Apache-2.0, version 0.24, 850+ stars.
- aid: xanadu:mrmustard
name: MrMustard
tags:
- Quantum Computing
- Photonic
- Quantum Optics
- Simulator
- Open Source
humanURL: https://mrmustard.readthedocs.io/
properties:
- url: https://mrmustard.readthedocs.io/
type: Documentation
- url: https://github.com/XanaduAI/MrMustard
type: GitHubRepository
- url: https://pypi.org/project/mrmustard/
type: SDK
description: MrMustard is a differentiable quantum-optics simulator that bridges phase space and Fock space with
pluggable NumPy and JAX backends. It performs fast exact Fock-amplitude computation for Gaussian components
and supports built-in Riemannian optimization, making it the modern successor to parts of Strawberry Fields
for photonic circuit research. Apache-2.0.
- aid: xanadu:thewalrus
name: The Walrus
tags:
- Quantum Computing
- Photonic
- Gaussian Boson Sampling
- Hafnian
- Open Source
humanURL: https://the-walrus.readthedocs.io/
properties:
- url: https://the-walrus.readthedocs.io/
type: Documentation
- url: https://github.com/XanaduAI/thewalrus
type: GitHubRepository
- url: https://pypi.org/project/thewalrus/
type: SDK
description: The Walrus is a Python/C++ library for the fast calculation of hafnians, loop hafnians, and
multidimensional Hermite polynomials — the linear-algebra primitives behind Gaussian boson sampling and
photonic quantum state characterization. Apache-2.0; published in the Journal of Open Source Software (2019).
- aid: xanadu:blackbird
name: Blackbird
tags:
- Quantum Computing
- Photonic
- Assembly Language
- DSL
- Open Source
humanURL: https://quantum-blackbird.readthedocs.io/
properties:
- url: https://quantum-blackbird.readthedocs.io/
type: Documentation
- url: https://github.com/XanaduAI/blackbird
type: GitHubRepository
- url: https://pypi.org/project/quantum-blackbird/
type: SDK
description: Blackbird is Xanadu's quantum assembly language and intermediate representation for
continuous-variable photonic quantum computation. It is used to program Xanadu's photonic hardware (X-series,
Borealis, Aurora) and the Strawberry Fields simulator. Apache-2.0.
- aid: xanadu:pennylane-qiskit
name: PennyLane-Qiskit Plugin
tags:
- Quantum Computing
- Plugin
- Qiskit
- IBM Q
- Open Source
humanURL: https://docs.pennylane.ai/projects/qiskit/
properties:
- url: https://docs.pennylane.ai/projects/qiskit/
type: Documentation
- url: https://github.com/PennyLaneAI/pennylane-qiskit
type: GitHubRepository
- url: https://pypi.org/project/PennyLane-qiskit/
type: SDK
description: PennyLane plugin that integrates IBM's Qiskit framework and IBM Q hardware as PennyLane devices for
differentiable quantum programming. Apache-2.0.
- aid: xanadu:flamingpy
name: FlamingPy
tags:
- Quantum Computing
- Error Correction
- Fault Tolerance
- Simulator
- Open Source
humanURL: https://flamingpy.readthedocs.io/
properties:
- url: https://flamingpy.readthedocs.io/
type: Documentation
- url: https://github.com/XanaduAI/flamingpy
type: GitHubRepository
description: FlamingPy is Xanadu's cross-platform Python library for efficient simulation of error correction in
fault-tolerant photonic quantum computers, with a variety of pluggable decoder backends. Apache-2.0.
- aid: xanadu:xanadu-cloud-client
name: Xanadu Cloud Client
tags:
- Quantum Computing
- Cloud
- CLI
- SDK
- Archived
humanURL: https://github.com/XanaduAI/xanadu-cloud-client
properties:
- url: https://github.com/XanaduAI/xanadu-cloud-client
type: GitHubRepository
- url: https://pypi.org/project/xanadu-cloud-client/
type: SDK
description: Xanadu Cloud Client (xcc) is the Python API and CLI that historically connected users to Xanadu's
photonic quantum cloud (Borealis, X-series). Xanadu's Quantum Cloud was retired in January 2026 and the
project is archived; the client remains a useful reference for Blackbird job submission patterns.
name: Xanadu
tags:
- Quantum Computing
- Photonic Quantum Computing
- Quantum Machine Learning
- Continuous Variable
- Open Source
- Python
- PennyLane
- Strawberry Fields
- Toronto
kind: contract
image: https://kinlane-productions2.s3.amazonaws.com/apis-json/apis-json-logo.jpg
access: 3rd-Party
common:
- url: https://xanadu.ai
type: Portal
- url: https://pennylane.ai
name: PennyLane
type: Portal
- url: https://xanadu.ai/about
type: Documentation
- url: https://xanadu.ai/blog
type: Blog
- url: https://pennylane.ai/blog
name: PennyLane Blog
type: Blog
- url: https://xanadu.ai/careers
type: Documentation
- url: https://github.com/XanaduAI
name: XanaduAI GitHub
type: GitHubOrganization
- url: https://github.com/PennyLaneAI
name: PennyLaneAI GitHub
type: GitHubOrganization
- url: https://www.linkedin.com/company/xanadu-quantum-technologies
type: LinkedIn
- url: https://twitter.com/XanaduAI
type: Twitter
- url: https://www.youtube.com/c/XanaduAI
type: YouTube
- url: https://discuss.pennylane.ai/
name: PennyLane Discussion Forum
type: Forum
- url: https://pennylane.ai/qml/
name: Quantum Machine Learning Hub
type: Training
- url: https://pennylane.ai/codebook
name: Xanadu Quantum Codebook
type: Training
- url: https://pennylane.ai/qml/demonstrations/
name: PennyLane Demos
type: CodeExamples
- url: https://pennylane.ai/plugins
name: PennyLane Plugins
type: Plugins
- url: https://docs.pennylane.ai/en/stable/development/release_notes.html
name: PennyLane Release Notes
type: ReleaseNotes
- url: https://github.com/PennyLaneAI/pennylane/blob/master/LICENSE
name: Apache License 2.0
type: License
- type: Features
data:
- name: Photonic Quantum Hardware
description: Continuous-variable photonic quantum processors based on squeezed states of light, including the
Borealis Gaussian-boson-sampling device and the Aurora modular system targeting fault-tolerant scaling.
- name: PennyLane Open-Source Framework
description: Hardware-agnostic Python framework for differentiable quantum programming across PyTorch, JAX,
TensorFlow, and NumPy with first-class quantum machine learning and quantum chemistry support.
- name: Plugin Ecosystem
description: Plugins connect PennyLane to IBM Qiskit, AWS Braket, Google Cirq, IonQ, Rigetti, Microsoft QDK,
Quantinuum/Honeywell, Qulacs, and Xanadu's own Strawberry Fields.
- name: Lightning High-Performance Simulators
description: C++ state-vector and tensor-network simulators with CPU, CUDA GPU, Kokkos, and tensor backends
for laptop-to-HPC quantum circuit simulation.
- name: Catalyst JIT Compiler
description: MLIR-based just-in-time compiler that lowers PennyLane hybrid quantum-classical programs to
native code with quantum control flow and end-to-end differentiation.
- name: Photonic Software Stack
description: Strawberry Fields, MrMustard, The Walrus, Blackbird, and FlamingPy provide continuous-variable
simulation, differentiable optics, Gaussian-boson-sampling primitives, an assembly DSL, and fault-tolerant
error-correction tooling.
- name: Quantum Codebook and QML Hub
description: Interactive Xanadu Quantum Codebook plus the pennylane.ai/qml hub with hundreds of research demos
covering quantum machine learning, chemistry, and algorithms.
sources:
- https://xanadu.ai
- https://pennylane.ai
- https://docs.pennylane.ai/en/stable/
updated: '2026-05-24'
- type: UseCases
data:
- name: Quantum Machine Learning Research
description: Train hybrid quantum-classical models with automatic differentiation against simulators and real
QPUs through a single PennyLane API.
- name: Quantum Chemistry
description: Run variational quantum eigensolver and chemistry workflows via pennylane.qchem, including ground
state, excited state, and dynamics simulations.
- name: Photonic Algorithm Research
description: Design continuous-variable algorithms — Gaussian boson sampling, graph optimization, molecular
vibronic spectra — in Strawberry Fields and MrMustard.
- name: Fault-Tolerant Architecture Studies
description: Use FlamingPy to simulate and benchmark photonic fault-tolerant quantum-computing architectures
and decoders.
- name: HPC-Scale Quantum Simulation
description: Run large state-vector and tensor-network simulations on multi-GPU and multi-node clusters with
Lightning + Catalyst.
- name: Quantum Education
description: Teach undergraduates and researchers quantum computing through the Xanadu Quantum Codebook,
QHack, and the pennylane.ai demo library.
updated: '2026-05-24'
- type: Integrations
data:
- name: IBM Qiskit / IBM Quantum
description: PennyLane-Qiskit plugin exposes IBM Q hardware and Qiskit simulators as PennyLane devices.
- name: AWS Braket
description: PennyLane plugin for Amazon Braket lets PennyLane circuits run against Braket-managed simulators
and partner QPUs.
- name: Google Cirq
description: PennyLane-Cirq plugin integrates Google's Cirq simulators.
- name: IonQ
description: PennyLane-IonQ plugin targets IonQ trapped-ion simulators and hardware.
- name: Rigetti
description: PennyLane-Rigetti plugin connects to Rigetti Forest QPUs and the QVM.
- name: Quantinuum / Honeywell
description: PennyLane-Honeywell plugin targets Quantinuum's trapped-ion systems.
- name: Microsoft Quantum Development Kit
description: PennyLane-qsharp plugin connects PennyLane to the Microsoft QDK simulators.
- name: Qulacs
description: PennyLane-Qulacs plugin provides access to the Qulacs simulator.
- name: PyTorch / JAX / TensorFlow / NumPy
description: First-class differentiable interfaces for every major Python ML framework.
- name: NVIDIA cuQuantum
description: Lightning GPU and Lightning Tensor leverage NVIDIA cuQuantum for accelerated simulation.
updated: '2026-05-24'
created: '2026-05-24T00:00:00.000Z'
modified: '2026-05-24'
position: Producing
description: Xanadu is a Toronto-based photonic quantum computing company building cloud-accessible continuous-
variable quantum processors based on squeezed states of light. Founded in 2016 by Christian Weedbrook and listed
on TSX/Nasdaq (XNDU), Xanadu demonstrated a 50-million-fold Gaussian-boson-sampling speedup with Borealis in
2022 and published modular networked photonic quantum computing in Nature in 2025. Beyond hardware, Xanadu is
one of the most prolific open-source contributors in quantum software — it maintains PennyLane (the de-facto
cross-platform quantum ML framework), Strawberry Fields, MrMustard, The Walrus, Blackbird, Catalyst, Lightning,
and FlamingPy, all under Apache-2.0. Xanadu's own Quantum Cloud was retired in January 2026; the company's
developer surface is now centered entirely on its open-source stack and integrations with third-party QPUs.
maintainers:
- FN: Kin Lane
email: [email protected]
X: apievangelist
url: https://apievangelist.com
specificationVersion: '0.16'