Discrete optimization: A quantum revolution?

Stefan Creemers, Luis Fernando Pérez Armas

Nicholas R. Allgood

Different types and approaches for using quantum mechanical events for computation have developed quickly with the quantum technology revolution. One of these, adiabatic quantum computing, uses the adiabatic theorem as a paradigm for computation. According to the adiabatic theorem, if conditions gradually change and a system is permitted to adjust its configuration (changing the probability density), the associated eigenstate will be of the final Hamiltonian if the system starts in an eigenstate of its initial Hamiltonian. Simply put, a quantum mechanical system that is subjected to rapidly changing and varying conditions, there isn’t enough time for a function to adapt which leaves the spatial probability density unchanged. A closely related optimization process that utilizes the adiabatic theorem known as quantum annealing, finds a global minimum over a candidate set of solutions by processing quantum fluctuations. Quantum annealing is used primarily in combinatorial optimization problems where the search space is large and discrete, containing multiple local minima.

Stefan Creemers, Luis Fernando Pérez Armas

Ojas Parekh

Ruchika Rastogi, Divyanshi Singh, Rohit Singh +1 more

Institutions — banks, insurers, hedge funds, and asset managers — are central to fueling the quantum revolution. They supply the capital necessary for research and development as principal investors in quantum startups and partnerships. As early movers, they pilot practical applications such as portfolio optimization, derivatives pricing, and catastrophe modeling, demonstrating quantum's real-world utility. They're also leading in quantum-safe security, advocating for higher encryption to keep valuable transactions secure from coming quantum attacks. By using quantum computing in risk management and product development, they can create more effective financial products, enhance lending and insurance precision, and facilitate better fraud detection. Briefly: Financial institutions drive, experiment with, secure, and amplify the quantum revolution, and profit from it as well. Finance and quantum are symbiotic — each propels the other.

Sergio Boixo, Rolando D. Somma