SMBC Completes Proof-of-Concept Experiment Using Quantum Computing
Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation, SMBC Digital Marketing Corporation, and Quanmatic jointly conducted a proof-of-concept experiment on "app advertisement analysis using quantum computing" aimed at advancing advertisement distribution in smartphone applications.
Background and Purpose
Quantum computing is a next-generation computational technology, currently used mainly in hybrid combination with conventional computers. Quantum computers particularly excel at combinatorial optimization problems used in areas such as delivery route optimization, and are expected to be applied to advertisement distribution based on data analysis. There are cases both domestically and internationally progressing from proof-of-concept experiments to limited production use, with effectiveness being verified in marketing and financial sectors.
SMBC Digital Marketing operates an "Advertising and Marketing Business" that supports advertisement placement on group companies' owned media and external media through data analysis, and a "Solutions Business" that supports the resolution and advancement of customers' marketing challenges. In smartphone app advertisement distribution, diverse data such as customer attribute information and app usage data are linked, suggesting room for improvement through advanced analysis.
This PoC aims to apply approaches such as feature selection using quantum computing to the advertisement distribution domain and verify its effectiveness compared to conventional machine learning-only methods.
Overview of This PoC
In this PoC, the partners verified the effectiveness of quantum AI technology that combines quantum computing with machine learning, including feature selection using quantum computing analysis methods (a method of selecting important items from factors such as age, gender, and address).
Specifically, the PoC targeted the analysis and recommendation of advertisement distribution in SMBC's smartphone application, conducting the demonstration using a combination of quantum AI technology and conventional machine learning models. Verification perspectives included targeting accuracy (e.g., click-through rate estimation), interpretability (visualization of important features), etc. Through this proof-of-concept experiment, effectiveness regarding these verification perspectives was confirmed.
[Role of Each Company]
- Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation: Use case design, project management, etc.
- SMBC Digital Marketing: Data integration, evaluation framework design, etc.
- Quanmatic: Design, implementation, and verification of quantum AI algorithms, etc.
Future Outlook
Based on the results of this PoC, Quanmatic will advance applications to the financial and advertising sectors with the advancement of quantum AI algorithms at its core. Quanmatic aims to create new value through practical solutions that fuse quantum computing and AI.
Based on the results of this PoC, SMBC Digital Marketing will gradually expand the target data and advertising categories going forward to verify reproducibility and versatility.
SMBC will continue to work with partner companies both within and outside the group on use cases that lead to the advancement of machine learning and business utilization of quantum computing, aiming to further improve customer services through verification and advancement-driven innovation.
Norbert Gehrke
