Japanese Firms & Academia Forming Alliances with Canada’s D-Wave to Research Quantum Solutions

(Kyodo.News) Japan companies and academic groups have formed alliances to utilize the quantum technologies developed by Canadian firms. For example, Japan’s Denso Corp., Kyocera Corp. and Sigma-i Co., have joined a project of D-Wave Systems Inc., the leading Canadian developer of quantum computing systems.
D-Wave provides people working on coronavirus pandemic challenges immediate and free access to its quantum computer via the cloud. Based in Burnaby, British Columbia, the company’s solution-providing initiative came at the request of the Canadian government, it said.
Masayuki Ozeki, CEO of Sigma-i, a Japanese start-up launched by Tohoku University to promote the industrial application of algorithms that use quantum-mechanical fluctuations, a process known as quantum annealing, said many companies in Japan have high expectations for real-world quantum computing applications.
It is hoped the deal between Sigma-i and D-Wave will bridge the gap between industry and academia and bring about a new era in quantum computing in Japan.
Using D-Wave’s quantum computing systems, Sigma-i has conducted several experiments to provide solutions for problems related to coronavirus infections, such as how to allocate scarce medical resources, notably coronavirus test kits, to medical institutions across the country.