SQUIRO framework cuts cloud costs 51% with quantum-aware scheduling on Kubernetes
New hybrid quantum-classical scheduler slashes energy 63% while enforcing strict security compliance.
Researchers Ignazio Pedone and Edoardo Giusto have published SQUIRO, a framework that brings security-aware scheduling to hybrid quantum-classical computing on Kubernetes. The system introduces a Unified Scheduling Model (USM) and a six-step Scheduler Design Methodology (SDM) to derive concrete schedulers for Kubernetes, HPC, and federated environments. Its key innovation is a circuit-aware quantum backend selector that evaluates coherence margin, calibration freshness, queue pressure, and hardware capabilities through a forward-compatible colocation hierarchy.
In synthetic Kubernetes cluster tests, SQUIRO's security model enforced 100% compliance for regulated workloads by construction, while its global optimization reduced infrastructure cost by up to 51% and energy consumption by up to 63% compared to greedy placement in underloaded scenarios. The framework also exhibited systematic divergence from naive error-rate ranking under coherence- and queue-limited conditions, highlighting the importance of considering multiple quantum backend characteristics. The current CP-SAT formulation shows manageable solve-time growth, making SQUIRO practical for real-world deployment.
- Achieves up to 51% cost reduction and 63% energy savings versus greedy placement in underloaded Kubernetes clusters
- Enforces complete security compliance for regulated workloads through hard feasibility constraints and residual-risk optimization
- Circuit-aware quantum backend selector considers coherence margin, calibration freshness, queue pressure, and hardware capabilities
Why It Matters
Enables secure, cost-efficient hybrid quantum-classical computing on Kubernetes—critical for regulated industries adopting post-quantum infrastructure.