Research News

Cleveland Clinic has been selected as a founding partner and the leading healthcare system in a new initiative meant to spur collaboration and innovation in the quantum computing industry.

Based in Greater Washington D.C., Connected DMV and a cross-sector coalition of partners are developing the new Life Sciences and Healthcare Quantum Innovation Hub to prepare the industry for the burgeoning quantum era and align with key national and global efforts in life sciences and quantum technologies.

The U.S. Department of Commerce’s Economic Development Administration (EDA) has awarded more than $600,000 to Connected DMV for development of the Hub. This will include the formation of a collaboration of at least 25 organizations specializing in quantum end-use and technology build.

Cleveland Clinic was invited to join the Hub because of its work in advancing medical research through quantum computing. As the lead healthcare system in the coalition, Cleveland Clinic will help define quantum’s role in the future of healthcare and disseminate education to other health systems on its possibilities.

“We believe quantum computing holds great promise for accelerating the pace of scientific discovery,” said Lara Jehi, MD, MHCDS, Cleveland Clinic’s Chief Research Information Officer. “As an academic medical center, research, innovation and education are an integral part of Cleveland Clinic’s mission. Quantum, AI and other emerging technologies have the potential to revolutionize medicine, and we look forward to working with partners across healthcare and life sciences to solve complex medical problems and change the course of diseases like cancer, heart conditions and neurodegenerative disorders.”

Last year, Cleveland Clinic announced a 10-year partnership with IBM to establish the Discovery Accelerator, a joint center focused on easing traditional bottlenecks in medical research through innovative technologies such as quantum computing, hybrid cloud and artificial intelligence. The partnership leverages Cleveland Clinic’s medical expertise with the technology expertise of IBM including its leadership in quantum technology which recently resulted in the Breakthrough Award in Fundamental Physics for quantum information science. The Discovery Accelerator will allow Cleveland Clinic to contribute to Connected DMV’s Hub by advancing the pace of discovery with the first private sector on-premises Quantum System One being installed on Cleveland Clinic’s main campus.     

“Innovation is always iterative, and requires sustained collaboration between research, development and technology, and the industries that will benefit from the value generated,” said George Thomas, Chief Innovation Officer of Connected DMV and lead of its Potomac Quantum Innovation Center initiative. “Quantum has the potential to have a substantive impact on our society in the near future, and the Life Sciences and Healthcare Quantum Innovation Hub will serve as the foundation for sustained focus and investment to accelerate and scale our path into the era of quantum.”

The Hub will be part of Connected DMV’s Potomac Quantum Innovation Center initiative, which aims to: accelerate quantum investment, and research and development; develop an equitable and scalable talent pipeline; and scale collaboration between the public sector, academia, industry, community, and investors to accelerate the value of quantum. The Quantum Innovation Hubs are a part of this initiative to focus on accelerating quantum investment, research and development in key industry sectors.