LETHBRIDGE — Businesses in southern Alberta can now experiment with a publicly accessible supercomputer. A new quantum computing hub, developed by SuperQ Quantum Computing, has opened its doors at the Tecconnect innovation centre, located at Economic Development Lethbridge.
SuperQ founder Muhammad Khan describes the platform, named Super, as web-based. Much like ChatGPT, it allows users to input complex, real-world problems in plain English and receive a multitude of potential solutions simultaneously. These could range from tackling supply chain issues to optimizing manufacturing processes.
How does it work? “The way it does it is by combining classical computing with quantum computing and doing all the complexity stuff under the hood,” Khan explained. While classical computing explores one path at a time, quantum computing investigates all possibilities concurrently, significantly speeding up problem-solving.
Businesses in Lethbridge, a city southeast of Calgary, can test the technology by posing questions such as how to establish efficient delivery routes or how to best schedule staff to minimize overtime. Khan noted that Super is slated for broader public release via license.
This Lethbridge hub marks the first in a global network of planned facilities. Additional locations are set to be established across Canada, the United States, Europe, India, and the United Arab Emirates.
For Khan, launching the platform’s core in Lethbridge feels like a full circle. “I have a deep affection for Tecconnect as my entrepreneurial journey started there,” he shared, recognizing the center’s role in fostering emerging technologies in Alberta and Canada. He also commented on the rarity of such business-focused initiatives, noting their difficulty in larger metropolitan areas.
Renae Barlow, vice-president of entrepreneurship and innovation at Economic Development Lethbridge, emphasized how emerging technologies like those at Tecconnect are crucial for business competitiveness. “Having businesses understand why it’s important for them to integrate this (technology) and to be on the leading edge and to really create that competitive advantage is what we wanted for our southern Alberta businesses,” Barlow stated. “To understand that this actually puts them ahead.”
Local teams are conducting workshops and training to help companies engage with the platform. Barlow added that businesses have expressed interest in areas such as understanding global markets and even determining nutritional values for cattle.
Beyond local businesses, the hub is attracting attention from government officials. Alberta’s minister of technology and innovation, Nate Glubish, recently praised the initiative on social media, declaring, “Alberta tech is booming.”
Khan also shared that some telehealth businesses have inquired about using Super to develop artificial intelligence doctors, especially when human medical professionals struggle to meet demand. “So that was done, but then the question was, ‘How do you increase the accuracy of those AI clinicians?’ And this is where we came in, and the Super platform came in to take those AI models to the next level.”
