IBM Research

What if we told you an experiment from Thanksgiving 1981 played a role in research that helped pave the way for modern LASIK technology. 👁️ When IBM researchers tested an excimer laser on leftover turkey bones, they uncovered insights that pushed precision laser research forward in unexpected ways. This season, we’re celebrating the curiosity that sparked innovation. Learn more about the science behind the story: https://ibm.co/6040BPP86

I recently sat down with Malcolm Gladwell for a live recording of Smart Talks with IBM at Tech Week in San Francisco to talk about why quantum matters, where we are today, and what’s ahead. We covered: - Why quantum complements—not replaces—classical computing - The breakthroughs that make a fault-tolerant quantum computer possible by 2029 - How quantum is already helping solve problems in chemistry, finance, and optimization - Why the future of computing will be heterogeneous, blending AI, classical, and quantum Listen to the full episode here: https://lnkd.in/eJF7-4bU

This week in Research: Our 6th annual AI Hardware forum in Yorktown Heights showcased how open software supporting a heterogeneous hardware ecosystem is reshaping the AI landscape. At Super Computing 2025 (#SC25), IBM researchers demonstrated how inference accelerates not by adding more GPUs, but by eliminating wasted computation. In quantum news, we announced plans with Cisco to lay the groundwork for a distributed quantum computing network, initiating the research needed to build the quantum computers of the future. Check here for more on the latest news from IBM Research ⤵️

A huge moment for innovation: IBM and University of Dayton are joining forces to push the boundaries of semiconductor technology and build a powerful pipeline of skilled talent.

It takes a village to make open infrastructure for AI a reality. Last week at the AI Hardware Forum, AI researchers from industry and academia came together for presentations and panels focused on one critical goal: building open software that supports a heterogeneous hardware ecosystem for AI. As IBM Research’s VP of Hybrid Cloud Mukesh Khare put it, “A chip alone isn’t enough.” This is not just an IBM initiative—it’s a collective effort to foster completeness and openness across the stack. Learn more about how IBM Research and partners are accomplishing this: https://ibm.co/6046BMU6e

GPUs are only part of the infra story of efficiently running AI at scale. Storage has an increasingly important role to play in optimizing cost-performance and scalability, providing significant advantages in time to first token for large language models. You can read more about it in our recent blog https://lnkd.in/etMSAMg9

What if AI agents could undo unsuccessful actions? IBM Research and University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign have taken a step closer towards that goal with STRATUS, a proposed multi-agent system with an undo-and-retry mechanism. Think CTRL + Z but for IT systems. With early results showing 150% better performance than state-of-the-art AI Ops systems, undoability could become a foundation for agentic applications beyond IT. Read the full story here: https://ibm.co/6048BMg0s

It’s been a big week in Research! Let’s take a look 👀 In Quantum: ▸ At our Quantum Developer Conference, we debuted IBM Quantum Nighthawk, our processor built for quantum advantage, and IBM Quantum Loon, our experimental processor will bring us closer to fault-tolerant quantum computers. ▸ We also unveiled 300mm quantum wafer fabrication at NY Creates, accelerating the complexity of our quantum chips and how fast we can make them. ▸ Plus, Qiskit SDK v2.2 now delivers smarter, more accurate, and more efficient performance with new capabilities and HPC integrations. In AI: ▸ New Stanford University findings spotlight the rise of smaller, energy-efficient models—where IBM Granite 4.0 demonstrates superior “intelligence per watt.” ▸ With University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, we launched STRATUS, a multi-agent system that can undo failed actions (yes, a “CTRL + Z” for IT), delivering 150% better reliability in tests. Dive deeper into this week’s news in the full article ⤵️

This week, the Hazy Research lab at Stanford University published findings indicating AI is quickly moving from an era dominated by large models running in data centers, to one where smaller, efficient models run locally on devices like laptops and phones. In their testing, which included IBM’s Granite 4.0 models, they found that smaller, compact models can handle over 88.7% of typical queries, reducing energy costs and latency by avoiding cloud routing. Hardware advances are accelerating local performance, closing the gap with cloud systems. Our Granite models, including Granite-4.0-H-Micro, exemplify this trend by enabling powerful AI on edge devices. This evolution promises more sustainable, accessible AI for everyday use, even in bandwidth-limited environments: https://ibm.co/6045BMpav Build with Granite on Hugging Face here: https://ibm.co/6046BMpaa Full report from Stanford Artificial Intelligence Laboratory (SAIL) here: https://ibm.co/6047BMpax

Today at #QDC25, we revealed that our quantum processors, including IBM Quantum Loon and IBM Quantum Nighthawk, are being fabricated at the NY Creates Albany NanoTech Complex using 300mm semiconductor wafer technology: https://ibm.co/6045BMukz The larger, 300mm silicon wafer (12-inch diameter) can accommodate more individual chips than its 200mm predecessor (8-inch diameter), allowing for more cost-effective chip yield per wafer and therefore shorter iteration and implementation cycle times. Charged with supporting our aggressive roadmap to large-scale fault-tolerancy by 2029, Christy S. Tyberg and Hemanth Jagannathan from IBM Research explain how the joint quantum-semiconductor team uses the benefits of state-of-the-art 300mm technology, established 200mm processes, and expertise across both paradigms to rewrite the rules for quantum chip production. This story is about more than processing quantum chips on larger wafers. It’s about using the best possible minds, machinery, and processes to realize quantum computing. The fabrication of IBM Quantum chips at the Albany NanoTech Complex—and the close synchronization between semiconductor experts and physicists across Albany and at the IBM Thomas J. Watson Research Center in Yorktown—is key to the success of quantum computing at IBM.