Qulab Indicates Quantum Computers Have Potential to Improve Drug Discovery & CRISPR Gene Editing

(Benzinga.com) Qulab, a pharma-chemical company, today released the results of new research focused on molecular dynamics simulations and quantum computing technology. The research is the first of its kind to propose that near-term quantum computers (~300 qubits) will be powerful enough to improve processes in areas such as computational drug discovery and CRISPR gene editing.
Anurag Mishra, a quantum computing scientist at Qulab and lead author of the paper, commented: “We propose that with only a few hundred qubits, a quantum computer can provide more accurate descriptions of small protein interactions and help improve the classical computational model of drug-protein interaction. We believe that QCs as small as the 300-qubit range can start making a difference to society in therapeutic areas such as drug discovery.”
Albert Azout, partner at Cota Capital, an investor in Qulab, added: “Over the long term, quantum computing holds great promise in improving the accuracy and scale of numerical simulations used in chemistry and other sciences. The question is: can quantum processors have tangible benefits in the next three to five years? Based on Qulab’s research, the answer is yes.”