Zapata Computing and DTU Explore How Quantum Can Help Large-Scale Pharmaceutical Manufacturing
BOSTON (April 25, 2023) – Zapata Computing, a leading developer of Quantum AI software for enterprises, today announced that it has signed an agreement with the prestigious Technical University of Denmark (DTU) to research how quantum can create near-term value for pharmaceutical manufacturers. The initiative is slated to kick-off later in 2023 and will explore real-world commercial applications and use cases in life sciences that can help set the foundation for solving larger pharmaceutical manufacturing challenges using quantum technology.
“The Danish quantum computing ecosystem continues to gain momentum,” said Anne Hougaard Jensen, Director at Invest in Denmark. “By connecting some of the best and brightest minds across the public, private and academic sectors – we’re showcasing the growing commitment to pushing innovation and technological expertise on a domestic and global scale.”
DTU’s department of chemical and biochemical engineering will spearhead the collaboration, tapping a PHD student to conduct use case research and pilot application development in collaboration with Zapata Computing.
“This collaboration is a part of DTU’s broader KT Consortium, an industry-academia collaboration including enterprises like AVEVA, Mitsubishi Chemical, Neste, Nouryon, Syngenta and more,” said Seyed Soheil Mansouri, Associate Professor, Department of Chemical and Biochemical Engineering at DTU. “We will leverage Zapata’s Orquestra® platform and expertise, arming ourselves with the technology and the know-how to conduct research, glean new insights and identify opportunities for improvement in pharmaceutical manufacturing.”
The research team will use Zapata’s Orquestra® platform, including Zapata proprietary methods and open-source libraries, to develop hybrid quantum-classical computing techniques to develop algorithms to solve problems with applications in biotechnology, (bio)pharma, renewable materials/chemicals, among others. The methods will be validated through experimentation to produce a novel, state-of-the-art, cost-effective and accurate solution. In this regard, the research will engage with stakeholders from Danish and Nordic biotech and biopharma sectors to identify strategic near-term use cases and demonstrate proof of concept of quantum technologies as key applications in these areas using Zapata’s proprietary technology. The expected outcome of the project is to identify potential use cases that are validated and benchmarked at pilot-scale for bio-manufacturing processes at DTU Chemical Engineering.
“Denmark is the birthplace of quantum theory and DTU represents some of the brightest and most forward-thinking minds in the quantum ecosystem today,” said Christopher Savoie, CEO and Co-Founder at Zapata Computing. “This collaboration presents us with an opportunity to dig deeper into specific pharmaceutical manufacturing challenges and pinpoint ways that generative AI and quantum technology can have an impact, both near-term and in the future. We’re excited about the potential of this collaboration and what it could mean for the pharma industry.”
Pictured:
(left) Seyed Soheil Mansouri, Associate Professor Technical University of Denmark
(right) Christopher Savoie, Chief Executive Officer, Zapata Computing
About Zapata Computing
Zapata Computing, Inc. is a leader in Quantum AI software for enterprise. The company’s Orquestra® platform supports the research, development, and deployment of Quantum AI solutions for enterprises’ most computationally complex problems. Zapata has pioneered new methods in generative AI, ML, optimization, and simulation to maximize value from today’s advanced compute resources and near-term quantum devices. The company works with ecosystem partners such as Amazon, D-Wave, Google, NVIDIA, Quantinuum, IBM, IonQ and Rigetti. Zapata was founded in 2017 and is headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts.
Media Contact:
Dan Brennan
ICR
