Utilizing NISQ devices for evaluating quantum algorithms

With the advent of quantum supremacy, we have an unprecedented opportunity to explore quantum algorithms in new ways. The emergence of general-purpose quantum processors opens up empirical exploration of quantum algorithms. Classically, heuristic algorithms, empirically tested on benchmark and real-world problems, work well in practice. With the empirical evaluation NISQ hardware enables, we enter the era of quantum heuristics, where we can expect a broadening of established applications of quantum computing. What to run, and how best to utilize these still limited quantum devices, remain open research questions. We discuss opportunities and challenges for using NISQ devices to evaluate quantum algorithms, including in elucidating quantum computational mechanisms, in designing novel quantum algorithms, in compilation and error-mitigation, and in techniques for evaluating quantum algorithms empirically.