Parallel Quantum Solutions
Parallel Quantum Solutions, founded in 1997 in Fayetteville, Arkansas, manufactures turnkey parallel computer systems with integrated ab initio computational chemistry software for academic and research chemists, pharmaceutical scientists, and material scientists requiring affordable high-performance molecular modeling.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1997
- HeadquartersFayetteville, United States
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingHardware or Manufacturing
What Parallel Quantum Solutions does
Parallel Quantum Solutions (PQS) is a privately held company founded in 1997 by Peter Pulay, Jon Baker, and Krzysztof Wolinski, headquartered in Fayetteville, Arkansas, that manufactures parallel computer systems with integrated software for high-performance computational chemistry. The company's core offering consists of QuantumCube parallel computing hardware (configurations ranging from 32-core to 128-core systems) pre-installed with its flagship PQS ab initio software suite, plus the PQSMol graphical user interface, the SQM vibrational-spectrum fitting module, the NBO analysis add-on, and StereoStation 3D visualization workstations. Technically, PQS provides fully parallel implementations of major quantum-chemistry methods including MP2, MP3, MP4, CCSD(T), QCISD(T), CCD, and CEPA variants, along with the proprietary Fourier Transform Coulomb method for large-basis-set DFT, geometry optimization, NMR chemical shifts, and analytical polarizabilities.
The company makes money through two primary channels: one-time hardware sales of QuantumCube and StereoStation systems (entry pricing under $11k and under $4k respectively, with academic discounts of 10% and 5%), and annual recurring software licenses for PQS ab initio and PQSMol priced on a per-process or per-copy basis ranging from $125 to $2,500 per year for industry customers, with lower academic tiers. Distribution is direct-sales led in North America (phone, email, fax, mail) and channel-partner led internationally, with regional distributors in Japan (Ryoka Systems), Turkey (Lookus Bilisim), China (Beijing Hongcam), and India (Harshad Agencies). Target customers are academic institutions, pharmaceutical scientists, material scientists, and research chemists who need affordable, turnkey parallel computing for ab initio molecular modeling — a value proposition built on cost efficiency versus general-purpose parallel supercomputers and pre-configured ease of use.
The company operates with 1-10 employees, has not disclosed any external funding rounds, and shows no evidence of venture capital, private equity ownership, or acquisition activity. The most recent major product release documented is PQS ab initio version 4.0 in 2011, and the company website carries a 2011 copyright notice, suggesting limited recent public-facing updates.
Parallel Quantum Solutions firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Parallel Quantum Solutions
- Legal name
- Parallel Quantum Solutions
- Website
- https://pqs-chem.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1997
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- Parallel Quantum Solutions, founded in 1997 in Fayetteville, Arkansas, manufactures turnkey parallel computer systems with integrated ab initio computational chemistry software for academic and research chemists, pharmaceutical scientists, and material scientists requiring affordable high-performance molecular modeling.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Parallel Quantum Solutions industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Computational Chemistry Systems
- NAICS
- Computer Systems Design and Related Services (54151), Semiconductor Machinery Manufacturing (333242)
- SIC
- Electronic Computers (3571), Services-Computer Integrated Systems Design (7373)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Hybrid Runtime Orchestration & Workflow Management (HDAGANAA)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Domain-Specific Hybrid Application Platforms (Optimization/Finance/Chemistry/Logistics) (HDAGANAJ), Hybrid Algorithm Frameworks & Libraries (VQE/QAOA/QML Tooling) (HDAGANAC)
Keywords
Where Parallel Quantum Solutions is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Fayetteville
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices3 records
Markets served
Parallel Quantum Solutions business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Hardware or Manufacturing
- Cost components
- Supply Chain, Operations, Technology or R&D, Personnel, Marketing or Sales
Revenue model
- QuantumCube Hardware Systems: Sale of parallel computing hardware systems pre-installed with PQS software. Systems start at under $11k with academic discounts available. Includes 3D stereo enabled StereoStation workstations starting under $4k.
- PQS ab initio Software Licensing: Annual software licenses for PQS ab initio version 4.0 with tiered pricing based on number of computing processes. Separate academic and industry pricing tiers.
- PQSMol Licensing: Annual licensing for PQSMol graphical user interface software with tiered pricing based on number of copies.
- Third-Party Software Distribution: Distribution of third-party software packages (ADF, COSMOtherm, Jaguar, Gaussian, MolPro, Q-Chem, PCModel, Spartan) preinstalled on QuantumStation systems at manufacturers' retail prices.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| One time/ perpetual license | Multi-year contract | QuantumCube Hardware - entry level |
| Subscription | Annual | PQS ab initio 4.0 - Academic pricing |
| Subscription | Annual | PQS ab initio 4.0 - Industry pricing |
| Subscription | Annual | PQSMol - Academic pricing |
| Subscription | Annual | PQSMol - Industry pricing |
| Subscription | Annual | SQM 2.0 |
| One time/ perpetual license | Multi-year contract | StereoStation Hardware |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels2 records
Marketing channels1 record
Parallel Quantum Solutions product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Parallel Quantum Solutions manufactures QuantumCube parallel computer workstations pre-installed with its proprietary PQS ab initio computational chemistry software, providing turnkey parallel processing for ab initio quantum chemistry calculations. The company also sells the StereoStation 3D visualization workstation, the PQSMol graphical user interface, the SQM vibrational force field module, and distributes third-party computational chemistry packages (ADF, Gaussian, Jaguar, MolPro, Q-Chem, Spartan, PCModel, COSMOtherm) on its hardware systems.
Product overview
Parallel Quantum Solutions offers a unified computational chemistry platform consisting of the PQS ab initio software suite as the core product, complemented by the PQSMol graphical user interface for model building and visualization, the SQM force field module for vibrational spectrum analysis, and specialized add-on modules including NBO analysis. These software products are sold as annual licenses and are preinstalled on the company's proprietary QuantumCube parallel computer hardware and StereoStation 3D visualization workstations. The company also supplies third-party computational chemistry packages (ADF, Gaussian, Jaguar, MolPro, Q-Chem, PCModel, Spartan, COSMOtherm) as preinstalled options on their hardware systems. PQS was founded in 1997 and focuses on ab initio modeling with parallel processing capabilities for chemistry, biochemistry, pharmaceutical science, and material science applications.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- QuantumCube: Line of parallel computer workstations designed for computational chemistry calculations, featuring various core configurations up to 128 cores.
- StereoStation
- PQSMol
- SQM
Products and services
- PQS ab initio software suite Flagship primarily ab initio computational chemistry software suite with highly efficient, fully parallel implementations of major calculational methods including SCF, DFT, MP2, CCSD(T) and other correlated wavefunction methods. Supports geometry optimization, vibrational frequencies, NMR chemical shifts, MP2 single-point energies, and molecular dynamics. Licensed annually on a per-process tiered basis to academic and industry customers.
- PQSMol graphical user interface Graphical user interface for the PQS ab initio program with model builder (featuring two molecular mechanics force fields), job input preparation, serial and parallel job submission with interfaces to SGE, DQS, and PBS job queues, and post-job visualization including molecular orbitals, electron densities, electrostatic potentials, optimization history, dynamics trajectories, normal mode animation, and IR, Raman, NMR, and VCD spectra simulation. Licensed annually per-copy.
- SQM (Scaled Quantum Mechanical Force Field Module) v2.0 Add-on module for fitting calculated PQS results to experimental vibrational spectra by optimizing scale factors for best fits to experimental fundamentals, providing improved agreement for both vibrational frequencies and IR intensities. Priced at $60/year academic and $120/year industry.
- NBO (Natural Bond Order) module Optional add-on module implementing Weinhold's Natural Bond Order analysis, including natural population analysis and steric analysis. Licensed separately from the base PQS software license as a supplementary module.
- QuantumCube parallel computer workstations Parallel computer workstations manufactured by PQS, pre-installed with the PQS ab initio software suite, offered in configurations from 32-core to 128-core systems with an exceptional performance/price ratio. Designed as turnkey dedicated systems for individual researchers or small groups needing cost-effective parallel computing for ab initio computational chemistry. Systems start under $11,000 (under $10,000 with academic discount).
- StereoStation 3D visualization workstations 3D stereo enabled workstation line for molecular visualization, featuring active shutter glasses synchronized at 120Hz refresh rate with projectors or monitors to produce two distinct images for stereoscopic viewing of molecular structures. Designed to outperform passive polarized and anaglyph (red/blue) glasses approaches. Systems start under $4,000 (5% academic discount available).
Companies that use Parallel Quantum Solutions
Customer profileSegments4 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Parallel Quantum Solutions technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration10 records
Feature5 records
Parallel Quantum Solutions partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Four partnerships are on record, tiered regional.
- Ryoka Systems, Inc.regionalRegional distributor for Japan. Mr. Kouji Chiba, Science & Technology System Division, 1-28-38 Shinkawa, Chuo-ku, Tokyo 104-0033, Japan. Phone: +81-3-3553-9206, [email protected]
- Lookus Bilisim, Ltd.regionalRegional distributor for Turkey. Metin Ates, Executive Manager. Phone: +90-216-372-6644, [email protected]
- Beijing Hongcam Software Technologies, Ltd.regionalRegional distributor for China (software only). Hong Gao, President. Phone: +86-106-253-7871, [email protected]
- Harshad AgenciesregionalRegional distributor for India. Ankit Shah. 306, Parshva Chambers, 17-21, Issaji St, Mumbai - 400 003. Phone: +91 22 2342 8485 / +91 98199 76060
Scale indicators1 record
Recent moves5 records
Expansion highlights4 records
Parallel Quantum Solutions competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- OpenEye Scientific (Cadence Design Systems): Computational chemistry and molecular modeling platform now part of Cadence. Targets overlapping pharmaceutical and biotech customer segments with broader cheminformatics and drug discovery tooling than PQS offers.
- Chemical Computing Group (CCG): Developer of the Molecular Operating Environment (MOE) drug discovery platform. Operates more broadly across computational chemistry and pharma workflows but competes for similar pharmaceutical scientist budgets.
- HPE (Cray): Provider of large-scale HPC and supercomputer systems that compete with PQS QuantumCube at the higher end of the parallel computing market for computational chemistry, though Cray systems are far more expensive and aimed at shared HPC centers.
Direct peers
- Schrödinger, Inc. Commercial computational chemistry and materials science software platform (including Jaguar ab initio, which PQS resells). Competes head-to-head with PQS ab initio for pharmaceutical and materials research budgets at similar academic and industrial customer sites.
- MolPro: Provider of the MolPro ab initio package for high-end correlated computations (multi-reference CI, CCSD(T)). Resold by PQS but also a direct competitor for methodologically sophisticated computational chemistry users.
- Scientific Computing and Modelling (SCM): Developer of the ADF density functional package, distributed by PQS as preinstalled software. Overlaps with PQS ab initio's DFT capabilities and competes for the same materials and chemistry research budgets.
- Q-Chem, Inc. Vendor of the Q-Chem ab initio package, also distributed preinstalled on PQS QuantumCube systems. Targets the same research chemist and pharma customer segments with similar correlated wavefunction and DFT capabilities.
- Gaussian, Inc. Developer of Gaussian, the leading ab initio computational chemistry package and one of PQS's most direct competitors. PQS even resells Gaussian 09 preinstalled on QuantumCube systems, underscoring how closely the two ecosystems intersect in serving computational chemists.
- Wavefunction, Inc. Vendor of the Spartan graphical modeling package, distributed by PQS but also a direct competitor offering its own computational chemistry workflow for research chemists and educators.
Emerging players
- COSMOlogic: Developer of COSMOtherm solvation software, distributed by PQS on QuantumCube systems. A more focused niche player in solvation thermodynamics with overlapping computational chemistry customers.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights5 records
Customer concentration
Parallel Quantum Solutions social profiles
Digital presenceParallel Quantum Solutions financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Parallel Quantum Solutions leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles3 records
Parallel Quantum Solutions funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Parallel Quantum Solutions M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Parallel Quantum Solutions
What does Parallel Quantum Solutions do?
Parallel Quantum Solutions manufactures QuantumCube parallel computer workstations pre-installed with its proprietary PQS ab initio computational chemistry software, providing turnkey parallel processing for ab initio quantum chemistry calculations. The company also sells the StereoStation 3D visualization workstation, the PQSMol graphical user interface, the SQM vibrational force field module, and distributes third-party computational chemistry packages (ADF, Gaussian, Jaguar, MolPro, Q-Chem, Spartan, PCModel, COSMOtherm) on its hardware systems.
Is Parallel Quantum Solutions a public or private company?
Parallel Quantum Solutions is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Parallel Quantum Solutions founded?
Parallel Quantum Solutions was founded in 1997. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is Parallel Quantum Solutions based?
Parallel Quantum Solutions is headquartered in Fayetteville, United States, in the North America region.
How does Parallel Quantum Solutions make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. QuantumCube Hardware Systems are the primary driver. The others are PQS ab initio Software Licensing, PQSMol Licensing and third-Party Software Distribution.
Who are Parallel Quantum Solutions's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are OpenEye Scientific (Cadence Design Systems), Chemical Computing Group (CCG) and HPE (Cray). Direct peers are Schrödinger, Inc., MolPro, Scientific Computing and Modelling (SCM), Q-Chem, Inc., Gaussian, Inc. and Wavefunction, Inc.. COSMOlogic is listed as an emerging player.
Does Parallel Quantum Solutions have an API?
No public API is recorded for Parallel Quantum Solutions.
What industry is Parallel Quantum Solutions in?
Parallel Quantum Solutions's product category is Computational Chemistry Systems. Its primary akta.pro industry code is HDAGANAA, Hybrid Runtime Orchestration & Workflow Management, with a secondary code of HDAGANAJ, Domain-Specific Hybrid Application Platforms (Optimization/Finance/Chemistry/Logistics). Its NAICS code is 54151 and its SIC code is 3571.