Cleveland Clinic, IBM Deploy First Healthcare Quantum Computer

Cleveland Clinic and IBM officially unveiled the installation of the IBM Quantum System One, the first deployment of an onsite private sector IBM-managed quantum computer in the United States and the first quantum computer in the world to be dedicated to healthcare research.

The computer, deployed earlier this week at Cleveland Clinic, aims to help the health system accelerate biomedical discoveries, according to the press release. IBM indicates that these computers run multidimensional quantum algorithms to solve problems that are too complex for traditional computers and supercomputers.

Plans for the computer’s deployment were initially shared in mid-October. The unveiling is part of the Cleveland Clinic-IBM Discovery Accelerator, a 10-year partnership formed between the two organizations in 2021 to advance biomedical research through a combination of Cleveland Clinic’s medical expertise and IBM’s expertise in high-performance computing, quantum computing, and artificial intelligence (AI).

The computer’s ability to tackle more complex problems could help Cleveland Clinic researchers identify new treatments and medicines more quickly.

"This is a pivotal milestone in our innovative partnership with IBM, as we explore new ways to apply the power of quantum computing to healthcare," said Tom Mihaljevic, MD, Cleveland Clinic CEO and president and Morton L. Mandel CEO chair, in the press release. "This technology holds tremendous promise in revolutionizing healthcare and expediting progress toward new cares, cures and solutions for patients. Quantum and other advanced computing technologies will help researchers tackle historic scientific bottlenecks and potentially find new treatments for patients with diseases like cancer, Alzheimer's and diabetes."

Alongside quantum computing, researchers participating in the Discovery Accelerator will leverage other technologies, such as AI, high-performance computing, and hybrid cloud, to generate and analyze data for various projects. These projects include the development of quantum computing pipelines to screen and optimize certain drugs, the improvement of a quantum-enhanced prediction model for cardiovascular risk after non-cardiac surgery, and the application of AI to search genome sequencing and large drug-target databases to find existing drugs that could be used to treat Alzheimer’s and other diseases.

Cleveland Clinic’s incorporation of quantum computing and participation in the Discovery Accelerator also serves as part of the foundation for the health system’s Global Center for Pathogen & Human Health Research, which focuses on investigating, preparing for, and protecting against emerging pathogens and viruses. According to the press release, researchers will use advanced computational technology to accelerate key research into treatments and vaccines.

"With the unveiling of IBM Quantum System One at Cleveland Clinic, their team of world-class researchers can now explore and uncover new scientific advancements in biomedical research," said Arvind Krishna, IBM chairman and CEO, in the press release. "By combining the power of quantum computing, artificial intelligence and other next-generation technologies with Cleveland Clinic's world-renowned leadership in healthcare and life sciences, we hope to ignite a new era of accelerated discovery."

The partnership will also work to design an educational curriculum to support these efforts and the skilled workforce needed to drive them by providing training and certification programs in data science, machine learning, and quantum computing for participants from high school to the professional level.