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CBC
5 hours ago
- CBC
Canada's first quantum computing hub boots up in southern Alberta
Social Sharing Businesses in southern Alberta are getting the chance to try out a publicly accessible supercomputer. A quantum computing hub, created by SuperQ Quantum Computing, recently opened at the Tecconnect innovation centre at Economic Development Lethbridge. SuperQ founder Muhammad Khan says the platform called Super is web-based and, similarly to ChatGPT, allows users to ask about complex real-world problems in plain English, and comes up with all possible solutions simultaneously. Problems could include supply chain bottlenecks or manufacturing inefficiencies. "The way it does it is by combining classical computing with quantum computing, and doing all the complexity stuff under the hood," Khan told The Canadian Press in a recent interview. "Classical computing is what we use everyday on our computers, on our laptops. "Classical computing would take one route, and if it fails, it comes back and takes another route. Whereas quantum computing takes all the possible routes at the same time. And as a result, it is able to figure out the maze a lot faster." Businesses in the city southeast of Calgary can trial the technology by asking questions like how to find efficient delivery routes or how to schedule staff to minimize overtime, Khan said. Super is to eventually be made available to the broader public by licence. The Lethbridge Super hub is the first in a series of planned networks worldwide. Other locations are set to be established elsewhere in Canada, the United States, Europe, India and the United Arab Emirates. Khan said setting up the platform's nucleus in Lethbridge is a full-circle moment. "I have a deep affection for Tecconnect as my entrepreneurial journey started there," Khan said, adding the centre has helped facilitate emerging technologies in Alberta and Canada. "That appetite to promote emerging technologies with a business focus is something that is not very common. And if you go to the big centres, it's hard to bring about these programs." Renae Barlow, vice-president of entrepreneurship and innovation at Economic Development Lethbridge, said emerging technologies, such as Tecconnect, can keep businesses competitive. Local teams are offering workshops and training to help companies learn more about the platform, she said. "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 said. "To understand that this actually puts them ahead." Khan said some businesses in telehealth have also reached out about using the platform to build artificial intelligence doctors. "Their human doctors couldn't keep up with the demand," he said. "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." Barlow said there's been other interest in things like understanding global markets and even determining nutritional values for cattle. The hub is also getting noticed by government officials. Nate Glubish, Alberta's minister of technology and innovation, highlighted the hub on social media. "Alberta tech is booming," he said.
CBC
6 hours ago
- CBC
Close encounter with great white shark near Halifax sparks awe, disbelief
A Dalhousie University student studying marine biology is sharing a breathtaking photo of a great white shark she took while on a recent research expedition off the coast of Halifax. Geraldine Fernandez snapped the picture Wednesday from a cage atop a boat operated by Atlantic Shark Expeditions near Sambro, a rural fishing community in the Halifax Regional Municipality. The male shark can be seen rising out of the water, staring almost directly at the camera, with his mouth agape and his teeth showing. For some, the image may be menacing. But for Fernandez, who is studying to become a shark biologist, coming up close and personal with the shark was closer to love at first bite. "The whole interaction was [one of] the most elegant, graceful and natural interactions that I have personally ever had with a shark," she said Friday in an interview with CBC's Mainstreet Halifax."It was able to show its size and its power without even doing anything. "People think they're these mindless animals that just attack, and, honestly, all it was doing was checking out the people, being a little curious, and I just got really lucky that day." 'Once-in-a-lifetime opportunity' When the image was shared on social media, many of the people commenting thought it had to be the product of artificial intelligence. But it came from a camera that Fernandez had attached to a pole. The shark was being monitored from a cage above, where she was stationed, and by divers underwater. "This encounter was extremely unique," said Neil Hammerschlag, the founder and president of Atlantic Shark Expeditions. His company regularly works with researchers like Fernandez. It also offers shark tours for civilians in Halifax and Yarmouth at various times of the year. "The other great whites we've seen this season, and there's been a handful of them, they've all been really cautious," Hammerschlag said. "This one stuck around for hours, they had no interest in the bait … was more interested in looking at the cage, rubbing up against the cage … and looking at what people were doing on the boat." Fernandez has been obsessed with sharks since she was young. As a summer research student with Dalhousie's Future of Marine Ecosystems Lab, she's been collecting data for a new method of monitoring sharks, which involves using a tool called a "shark bar" to measure the size of sharks in the water. Her close encounter with the great white shark is more proof she's on the right track. "It definitely felt like a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity," she said. "All it's done is just put more drive in me to continue my research and continue with shark exploration."
CTV News
7 hours ago
- CTV News
‘Tech is booming': Canada's first quantum computing hub boots up in southern Alberta
A new quantum super hub launched by Economic Development Lethbridge is helping to make Lethbridge a national leader in advanced computing. Businesses in southern Alberta are getting the chance to try out a publicly accessible supercomputer. A quantum computing hub, created by SuperQ Quantum Computing, recently opened at the Tecconnect innovation centre at Economic Development Lethbridge. SuperQ founder Muhammad Khan says the platform called Super is web-based and, similarly to ChatGPT, allows users to ask about complex real-world problems in plain English and come up with all possible solutions simultaneously. Problems could include supply chain bottlenecks or manufacturing inefficiencies. 'The way it does it is by combining classical computing with quantum computing and doing all the complexity stuff under the hood,' Khan told The Canadian Press in a recent interview. 'Classical computing is what we use everyday on our computers, on our laptops. 'Classical computing would take one route, and if it fails, it comes back and takes another route. Whereas quantum computing takes all the possible routes at the same time. And as a result, it is able to figure out the maze a lot faster.' Businesses in the city southwest of Calgary can trial the technology by asking questions like how to find efficient delivery routes or how to schedule staff to minimize overtime, Khan said. Super is to eventually be made available to the broader public by licence. The Lethbridge Super hub is the first in a series of planned networks worldwide. Other locations are set to be established elsewhere in Canada, the United States, Europe, India and the United Arab Emirates. Khan said setting up the platform's nucleus in Lethbridge is a full-circle moment. 'I have a deep affection for Tecconnect as my entrepreneurial journey started there,' Khan said, adding the centre has helped facilitate emerging technologies in Alberta and Canada. 'That appetite to promote emerging technologies with a business focus is something that is not very common. And if you go to the big centres, it's hard to bring about these programs.' Renae Barlow, vice-president of entrepreneurship and innovation at Economic Development Lethbridge, said emerging technologies, such as Tecconnect, can keep businesses competitive. Local teams are offering workshops and training to help companies learn more about the platform, she said. '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 said. 'To understand that this actually puts them ahead.' Khan said some businesses in telehealth have also reached out about using the platform to build artificial intelligence doctors. 'Their human doctors couldn't keep up with the demand,' he said. '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.' Barlow said there's been other interest in things like understanding global markets and even determining nutritional values for cattle. The hub is also getting noticed by government officials. Nate Glubish, Alberta's minister of technology and innovation, highlighted the hub on social media. 'Alberta tech is booming,' he said. This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 2, 2025. — By Aaron Sousa in Edmonton
