Kariya, Aichi Prefecture, and Palo Alto, Calif. – AISIN Group is taking digital transformation by the horns. The automotive technology giant and QC Ware today announced a research collaboration exploring the impact of quantum optimization and quantum machine learning algorithms on automotive applications. The collaboration utilized commercially available quantum computers from D-Wave Systems and Rigetti Computing.
Aisin is a leading global supplier of components and systems for the automotive industry and the world’s largest transmission manufacturer. Its customers represent a wide range of automotive manufacturing giants, including Toyota, Volkswagen Group, PSA Group, Volvo, and the BMW Group.
“The auto industry must change drastically to meet the new dynamics of next-generation mobility. At Aisin, we continuously build our technological capabilities, focusing on innovation and future-oriented research and development. Our goal is to advance digital transformation, and to bring new value-added products to global markets,” said Katsuhiko Eguchi, Executive General Manager, Corporate R&D Division, Aisin Seiki Co., Ltd. “QC Ware and Aisin’s research is focused on solving critical automotive parts design challenges, including quality assurance in automatic transmission software. We are also exploring how we can remove computational bottlenecks in big data calculations on logistic services. We want to be well-prepared with top-rate quantum computing skills when quantum computers are ready for commercial use.”
According to IDC senior research analyst Heather West, findings from IDC’s Quantum Computing Adoption Trends: 2020 Survey Findings indicate that while most manufacturing companies demonstrate a high interest in quantum computing, only a small percentage have been able to jumpstart their quantum computing initiatives partially due to complex technology and skillset limitations.
“QC Ware has an interesting top-down approach to making quantum computing practical for businesses, said Peter Rutten, Research Director, IDC. “They build algorithms for distinct industrial use cases and then run those algorithms on whatever hardware is most suitable – as a quantum simulation on classical computers, on a D-Wave system, on IBM’s Quantum service, or on Rigetti.”
Rutten added, “IDC found that Aisin was able to begin understanding the potential of quantum computing for improving their manufacturing operations beyond traditional methods. They have subsequently initiated two POCs, thanks to the collaborative research with QC Ware’s algorithms experts.”
Matt Johnson, CEO, QC Ware, said the partnership will also give QC Ware a better understanding of future industry needs and how quantum computing can play a role.
“Aisin is at the forefront of emerging tech and research initiatives in Japan and globally,” said Johnson. “While the main objective of our research collaboration is knowledge transfer and quantum computing skills building for competitive advantage, it also helps us at QC Ware to understand how quantum algorithms can address the current and future needs of the automotive industry.”
About AISIN Group
AISIN Group is the sixth largest, global Tier One supplier of automotive components and systems such as brakes, transmissions, navigation systems, drivetrain, chassis, body, engine-related parts, electronics and intelligent transportation systems, and the largest transmission manufacturer in the world. A $35 billion company, Aisin Group has over 200 consolidated companies and employs approximately 120,000 people. In the Americas, Aisin Group companies include 14,000 employees, 36 manufacturing, sales, and R&D centers, including Aisin Technical Center of America located at the North American Headquarters in Northville, Mich., and FT-Techno of America, the company’s 950-acre test track and proving ground in Fowlerville, Mich.
About QC Ware
QC Ware is a quantum computing-as-a-service company building enterprise solutions that run on quantum computing hardware. QC Ware’s mission is to be the first company to offer a practical application providing quantum advantage over classical computers. QC Ware is working towards that goal with one of the world’s strongest teams of quantum algorithms scientists. The company is already generating revenue through successful research collaborations with industry leaders in the automotive, aerospace, finance, material design, and oil and gas sectors. QC Ware is headquartered in Palo Alto, Calif., and has a wholly owned subsidiary in Paris, QC Ware France. For more information, please visit qcware.com.
QC Ware also hosts the annual “Q2B – Practical Quantum Computing” conference every December in Silicon Valley. The three-day conference brings industry, government and research institutions together to stimulate application discovery and development. For more information, please visit q2bconference.com
About QC Ware’s Forge cloud service
Forge, QC Ware’s cloud services platform, enables large enterprises and public-sector organizations to start building quantum skills and prepare for the potential disruption that quantum computing will bring to the market in the near future. Forge allows enterprise users with no presumed quantum computing expertise to run problems on a wide range of quantum computing hardware platforms and simulators. Forge users can access end-to-end implementations of proprietary and open-source algorithms for binary optimization, chemistry simulation, and machine learning.
