Delta Air Lines Teams With IBM to Explore Quantum Computing

Delta Air Lines announced Wednesday it is working on a multi-year collaborative effort with IBM to explore the potential capabilities of quantum computing to transform experiences for customers and employees.

The partnership will also include Delta joining the IBM Q Network, a 100-plus strong global community of Fortune 500 companies, startups, academic institutions and research labs working to advance quantum computing and explore practical applications.

“Partnering with innovative companies like IBM is one way Delta stays on the leading edge of tech to better serve our customers and our people, while drawing the blueprints for application across our industry,” Delta CIO Rahul Samant said in a statement. “We’ve done this most recently with biometrics in our international terminals and we’re excited to explore how quantum computing can be applied to address challenges across the day of travel.”

“We are very excited by the addition of Delta to our list of collaborators working with us on building practical quantum computing applications,” IBM Director of Research Dario Gil said in a statement. “IBM’s focus, since we put the very first quantum computer on the cloud in 2016, has been to move quantum computing beyond isolated lab experiments conducted by a handful of organizations, into the hands of tens of thousands of users.”

“We believe a clear advantage will be awarded to early adopters in the era of quantum computing and with partners like Delta, we’re already making significant progress on that mission,” Gil continued.

As part of the CES 2020 opening keynote address by Delta CEO Ed Bastian, he spoke about the airline’s focus on using technology to extend the warmth of its people to non-traditional airline touchpoints and delivering innovative experiences that reduce stress across the travel day.

In addition, Delta will have access to the IBM Q Network’s world’s largest fleet of universal hardware quantum computers for commercial use cases and fundamental research, thanks to the IBM Q Hub at NC State University.

“NC State is proud to partner with Delta to accelerate real-world applications as part of our IBM Q Hub,” IBM Q Hub at NC State Executive Director Dr. Daniel Stancil said. “Our quantum-trained students and researchers are excited to work alongside IBM and Delta to identify opportunities for development and implementation.”