Hardware alone is not enough

Isabel Gerdert, vice president of the central research and technology department of Airbus, began her panel at the GITEX 2024 global event as follows: “Computer-based simulations, while being realistic, make the process of researching, manufacturing and certifying an aircraft cost-effective and fast.” They do, and they do it with a remarkable level of precision.”

Building airplanes with the help of artificial intelligence

To demonstrate the power of this simulation, Gerdert displayed an Airbus A350 wing; “With advanced simulations, we were able to predict the bending of the plane’s wing with millimeter accuracy,” he said. “Day by day, our computer models are becoming increasingly sophisticated to accurately reflect physical phenomena.”

Need for processing power

He went on to point out that easy and fast access to computing is really key in the manufacturing process, he said: “However, there are hardware and physical limitations in the way that we have to go to the chip manufacturing technology in the first place, there is still a lot of potential. There is room for improvement on the hardware side.”

Gerdert announced that they are preparing for the next generation of high-performance computing, which will enter service in the coming years and significantly increase their computing power.

Based on this and according to the deputy of the central research and technology department of Airbus, this company with new technology is among the top 100 companies in this industry worldwide.

Not enough hardware

He further added: “Hardware capacity is part of the equation, but having software running on it is also essential. “But what we’ve learned here is that hardware alone is not the solution to staying relevant to our needs, we also need smart people.”

Gerdert continued: “We faced limitations and programming challenges along this path; So we have no choice but to talk about quantum. “Quantum computing is the next big game changer for the aerospace industry, and it truly has the potential to create a paradigm shift in how aircraft are built and flown.”

“Today, quantum computers are commercially available,” he continued. “We can access them and we can test them and we can learn how to use them.”

Gerdert went on to say that this approach will be key for Airbus: “This approach will help us really work towards new designs as well as solve the most complex aerospace challenges.”

Applications of quantum computing in the aerospace industry

According to the vice president of the central research and technology department of Airbus, quantum computing has various applications in the aerospace industry, from flight planning to supply chain optimization and data analysis.

“Quantum solutions increase our ability to solve complex equations,” Gerdert said. Therefore, using them to improve aerodynamic modeling will be very useful in order to improve the design of our future products.”

Pointing out that Airbus has been investigating quantum computing for the past 8 years, he said: “Hardware must be improved; But what is also clear is that with each new project we are learning. “We are learning about quantum hardware requirements as well as how to efficiently integrate quantum computing into our industry workflows.”

Gerdert continued: “At Airbus, we realized that in order to mature this technology, we really need to seek cooperation with global experts; So maturity is the responsibility of the entire quantum community. “Collaborations will push quantum computing further towards finding industrial value.”