AT&T signs agreement with D-Wave to expand quantum computing use across network operations

AT&T has a working relationship with D-Wave Quantum to expand the use of quantum computing across its network operations, a collaboration that has already produced significant efficiency gains for the telecom giant. The partnership centers on D-Wave’s annealing quantum computing technology, a specialized approach to solving optimization problems. For a company managing thousands of field technicians across the US, that capability turns out to be enormously consequential. From one hour to 15 seconds AT&T has already used D-Wave’s quantum systems to optimize its field-technician dispatch process, cutting computation time from roughly one hour down to just 15 seconds. Field dispatch is one of the more demanding optimization problems in telecom. You’re trying to match thousands of technicians with varying skill sets to thousands of service calls across different geographies, all while minimizing drive time and maximizing the number of completed jobs per day. D-Wave’s quantum annealing approach is purpose-built for exactly this type of constraint-heavy optimization. AT&T representatives spoke at D-Wave’s Qubits 2026 user conference, where discussions focused on quantum appli...