BQP is the complexity class of problems a quantum computer can solve efficiently, and the lens through which Aaronson long argued the field was overhyped. He and his brother have named a new angel syndicate after it.
BQP stands for Bounded-Error Quantum Polynomial time, the complexity class of problems a quantum computer can solve efficiently, and therefore the class of problems where a quantum computer, in practice, often cannot beat a classical one. For nearly two decades, Scott Aaronson has wielded BQP as a brake on quantum-computing hype. This week he and his brother put the acronym on an AngelList syndicate of their own.
The syndicate is small by design. It uses the standard AngelList format, structured so outside investors join individual rounds through special-purpose vehicles rather than committing capital to a full fund. In his announcement post, Aaronson, the UT Austin quantum complexity theorist who wrote Quantum Computing Since Democritus, frames the move as partly a FOMO response. He lists what held him back: fear of tying self-worth to money, distaste for the bullying and hype culture that has accompanied quantum fundraising, and a more practical concern, the BQP problem itself. He notes that nearly every quantum and AI colleague has launched a startup in the past two years.
BQP is the formal lens through which Aaronson has argued, in papers and lectures, that current quantum hardware is overhyped. He has argued that some problems inside BQP admit classical algorithms nearly as good as quantum ones, which means a working quantum computer does not automatically deliver the exponential speedups the marketing decks promise. In the post Aaronson pushes the joke one beat further: BQP, he writes, is also 'the class of problems that a quantum computer cannot help me evaluate nearly as well as I would need to in order to be a competent investor.' Naming the venture after the complexity class he uses to deflate hype is its own concession: a fund built on the assumption that the field he has argued is overhyped is now worth backing.
Oratomic's Series A is a natural early fit for the stated thesis, given the company's positioning at the intersection of materials science and quantum materials. The AngelList page does not yet disclose check sizes, the brother's prior investing background, or a full portfolio list beyond what Aaronson hints at in his post. Those details should land with the syndicate's first deal.
Aaronson's stated thesis points at the categories where his academic colleagues have already raised tens of millions over the past two years. PsiQuantum and IonQ-adjacent figures anchor the wave of complexity-theory researchers moving into operator roles. Aaronson has watched from the sidelines and written about why the technology still has hard limits. His decision to launch even a small angel syndicate marks the moment the gravitational pull of the current quantum funding cycle reached one of the few mainstream academics who publicly resisted its draw.
The first checks out of BQP Partners will telegraph where the thesis lands. A portfolio of mostly quantum-AI adjacencies rather than pure-play hardware would confirm Aaronson's framing. A hardware-heavy first deal would be the louder signal, given how often he has warned that the BQP-class performance bar is still unmet.