Pharmaceutical and healthcare companies are investing in quantum computing to accelerate drug design, clinical studies, and personalized treatments. Last year, Merck, Johnson & Johnson, Roche, and Amgen filed patents related to quantum computing. Moderna and IBM, as well as AstraZeneca and Sanofi with Alphabet spinoff SandboxAQ, have formed partnerships to explore this technology. Quantum computing’s speed and ability to process large amounts of data could revolutionize the industry. However, the technology is still in its early stages and faces challenges. Key individuals mentioned include Simon McAdams from Quantinuum and Christofer Tautermann from Boehringer Ingelheim.
Quantum Computing in Pharma: A New Frontier
Quantum computing, a technology that leverages the peculiar characteristics of quantum particles, is increasingly being adopted by pharmaceutical and healthcare companies. Unlike classical computers that use binary bits, quantum computers rely on ‘qubits’ that can exist in multiple states simultaneously, thereby enabling the processing of vast amounts of data and providing numerous potential outcomes to a problem. This ‘quantum advantage’ is what pharmaceutical companies aim to harness for rapid in silico evaluation of drug molecule targets and protein folding characterization.
In 2023, Moderna and IBM formed a partnership to explore quantum computing and generative AI, as did AstraZeneca and Sanofi with Alphabet spinoff SandboxAQ. Other pharma giants like Merck, Johnson & Johnson, Roche, and Amgen have also filed patents relating to quantum computing. Quantum computing’s potential to integrate genomics, transcriptomics, and all human ‘omics to make more reliable predictions than traditional computers is a significant draw for these companies.
Quantum Computing’s Potential in Drug Design and Discovery
Quantum computing’s ability to crunch through complex, large datasets and work with numerous variables that interact in complicated ways can accelerate drug design and discovery. It can solve protein folding problems, forecast ligand–protein binding, and solve secondary structures. By optimizing patient data, quantum computers could also solve real-world problems, speeding up clinical studies and ushering in precision medicine.
For instance, Boehringer Ingelheim is using quantum algorithms to investigate the behavior of small molecules in the vicinity of proteins to predict protein–ligand binding energies. Pfizer and IBM have also collaborated to integrate generative AI and quantum computing to improve clinical trial performance and speed results.
The Challenges of Quantum Computing
Despite its potential, quantum computing is still in its infancy, and there are significant challenges to overcome. The hardware must evolve, and the processing power of quantum computers must be scaled up to a usable level. When a qubit is in a superposition state of ones and zeroes, it is susceptible to noise, which can transform it back into a classical bit. The quest today is for fault-tolerant, or error-resistant, quantum computers.
The Novo Nordisk Foundation (NNF) is investing in building a usable quantum computer. It awarded $200 million to the University of Copenhagen in 2022 to build such a computer and created a Danish center for AI advancement with tech giant Nvidia. This center will house one of the world’s most powerful AI supercomputers, which will be instrumental in developing fault-tolerant quantum computing.
Quantum Computing in Real-World Applications
The ultimate goal is to identify real-world situations where quantum computers can outperform their classical counterparts. Xprize Quantum Applications announced a $5 million prize for practical applications of a quantum computer with support from Google Quantum AI and the Geneva Science and Diplomacy Anticipator foundation. The United Kingdom’s Wellcome Leap, funded by the charitable Wellcome Trust and focused on research supporting health, has recently done the same with its Q4Bio Supported Challenge Programme.
Companies like Quantinuum are working to develop quantum tools for drug discovery. Amgen has used Quantinuum’s computer hardware as a first step toward computer-aided drug design. The algorithm classified peptides according to their binding affinity to a particular molecule to identify a therapeutic capable of regulating the immune response.
The Future of Quantum Computing in Healthcare
The potential of quantum computing for healthcare is clear, but investment speed bumps could slow progress. Warning signs of a ‘quantum winter’ emerged in 2023 as global spending in quantum computing halved. The race to the ultimate quantum computer also introduces uncertainties, as techniques such as single-photon qubits are being met with competing approaches such as neutral atoms.
Despite the challenges, the industry remains optimistic about the timeline, with some estimates suggesting that we will start to reap the benefits of the technology by 2030. The combination of better hardware and more sophisticated quantum algorithms is lowering the barrier for progress in quantum computing. The technology may yet be too preliminary to have demonstrated significant translational benefits, but the community has confidence in the early steps that are being made, both in the technology and the software.
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