Powerful results from joining quantum computing and AI

[smfadmin (OP)]

https://cosmosmagazine.com/technology/computing/quantum-machine-learning-practical/

February 3, 2025

Researchers have used quantum physics and machine learning to quickly and accurately understand a mound of data – a technique, they say, could help extract meaning from gargantuan datasets.

Their method works on groundwater monitoring, and they’re trialling it on other fields like traffic management and medical imaging.

“Machine learning and artificial intelligence is a very powerful tool to look at datasets and extract features,” Dr Muhammad Usman, a quantum scientist at CSIRO, tells Cosmos.

“Quantum computing is an emerging technology, and it has the potential to offer immense computational capabilities.”

Quantum computing uses quantum properties, like superposition, to process information much faster than traditional “classical” computers.

“This special property allows you to process very, very large data sets very, very efficiently,” says Usman.

While usable quantum computers are still a few years away, they’re improving rapidly.

Usman and his team have simulated a quantum machine learning technique on classical computers to test it out. They trialled it on a vast dataset they had easy access to at the CSIRO, linked to groundwater monitoring.

“Groundwater monitoring is a very complex problem, and it is very costly,” he says.

Traditionally, it’s monitored by physically going to sites, collecting samples, and taking them to labs to look for signs of contamination. CSIRO has developed sensors which can monitor groundwater remotely.

abstract quantum AI art
Credit: MR.Cole_Photographer / Getty Images: