Korea and U.S. Strengthen Quantum Technology Alliance... Paik Kyunghoon Visits IBM and BNL

Agreement Reached on Establishing R&D Research Center

On September 23 (local time), Paik Kyunghoon, Minister of Science and ICT, visited both the IBM Watson Research Center and Brookhaven National Laboratory (BNL) in the United States. During these visits, he agreed to strengthen Korea-U.S. cooperation in building quantum infrastructure, nurturing talent, and advancing basic research.

Ha Jungwoo, Chief AI Scientist of the Presidential Office, Bae Gyeonghun, Minister of Science and ICT, and Jay Gambetta, Vice President of IBM (fourth from the left in the front row), are taking a commemorative photo in front of the 'System Two' quantum computer installed at the IBM Watson Research Center. Ministry of Science and ICT

According to the Ministry of Science and ICT, Minister Paik signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with IBM on the same day to foster the quantum science and technology industry. This collaboration is a comprehensive academia-industry-research project involving the National Research Foundation of Korea, the National Science and Technology Research Council (NSC), KAIST, and others. Its main components include: ▲ Establishing quantum computer infrastructure and providing related services ▲ Research and development for industrial applications ▲ Training specialized personnel based on Qiskit. Both sides also agreed to establish a quantum computer R&D center.

The Watson Research Center is a world-renowned industrial research institute operated by IBM and is a key hub for the development of artificial intelligence (AI) and quantum computers. Minister Paik met with Korean researchers there and also examined IBM's latest "System Two" quantum computer.

Prior to Minister Paik's visit, former Minister of Science and ICT Lee Jongho also visited the IBM Watson Research Center to directly assess the state of quantum computer research. The consecutive visits by ministers are interpreted as evidence that the government recognizes quantum technology as a strategic priority.

Minister Paik also discussed the direction of quantum development with Jay Gambetta, Vice President of IBM; Baek Hanhee, Director at IBM; Wade Davis, CTO of Moderna; and Kim Euna, Professor at Cornell University.

Paik Kyunghoon, Minister of Science and ICT, is touring the BNL Research Institute. Ministry of Science and ICT

During the visit to BNL, discussions continued on integrating quantum technology into basic science research. BNL, under the U.S. Department of Energy, possesses world-class research infrastructure such as the Electron-Ion Collider (EIC) and the Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider (RHIC), and it also operates a Quantum Information Science (QIS) Center supported by the Department of Energy.

Minister Paik emphasized the need to expand cooperation between Korean government-funded research institutes and BNL, proposing that quantum technology be integrated into basic science to open new research paradigms.

Minister Paik stated, "Cooperation with the United States, which is at the forefront of quantum science and technology, is crucial at this time. During this visit to the U.S., we established a mutually complementary partnership with IBM and domestic academia, industry, and research institutions in terms of talent, technology, and infrastructure, and discussed ways to expand cooperation into advanced technology fields with BNL, which is innovating basic research using quantum technology and AI."

Taking this collaboration as an opportunity, Korea and the United States are also seeking to strengthen intergovernmental cooperation. The Ministry of Science and ICT added that it is pursuing the signing of an Implementation Arrangement (IA) and a Statement of Intent (SOI) for science and technology cooperation with the U.S. Department of Energy.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.