IonQ and quantum software company QC Ware demonstrated a hybrid quantum-classical workflow. This workflow aims to accelerate drug discovery. QC Ware's Promethium® platform ran on IonQ's Forte quantum computer. Amazon Braket provided access to the system.
The workflow modeled the active site of a complex enzyme. This enzyme family is responsible for most human drug metabolism. The system combined classical computing for pre-processing with quantum measurements on IonQ's hardware. It calculated a key energy metric. This metric achieved accuracy well within the industry-accepted threshold for chemical precision. The result was more than twice as accurate as standard classical methods.
This achievement demonstrates a hardware-agnostic approach for QC Ware's platform. It also shows that hybrid quantum methods can accurately predict molecular binding behaviors. For the biopharma industry, this could lead to better ranking of drug candidates. It could also enable earlier identification of metabolic risks. This potentially saves time and resources in the development process.