Appointing renowned quantum scientist and Academia Sinica Academician Prof. Kang-Lung Wang as Honorary Director to establish an AI-driven quantum healthcare platform

Asia University President Jeffrey J.P. Tsai remarked that with the addition of Academician Prof. Kang-Lung Wang and AU’s solid foundation in AI research, the university is confident in building an innovative AI-driven quantum healthcare platform to cultivate international talents for the Quantum AI era

Asia University (AU) inaugurated its Quantum AI Research Center on September 10, appointing internationally renowned quantum scientist and Academia Sinica Academician Prof. Kang-Lung Wang as Honorary Director. AU President Jeffrey J.P. Tsai highlighted that Prof. Wang, currently a Chair Professor at UCLA, has made pioneering contributions in quantum computing, quantum materials, and quantum information theory, and is widely recognized in global academia. With his leadership and AU’s solid foundation in AI research, the Center aims to establish an innovative AI-driven quantum healthcare platform and nurture global talents for the Quantum AI era.

President Tsai emphasized that AI is rapidly transforming society, while quantum computing is regarded as the next disruptive technology. The synergy between AI and quantum computing is expected to reshape the world, with major breakthroughs anticipated in drug discovery, climate modeling, and other fields in the coming years. The Center will focus on interdisciplinary integration and academia-industry collaboration, advancing quantum algorithm design, quantum machine learning, cybersecurity and encryption applications, while extending to AI-driven healthcare and smart finance. AU seeks to play a pioneering role in Quantum AI, cultivating talents with both global perspectives and practical innovation.

President Tsai also noted that NVIDIA founder Jensen Huang has highlighted the promise of Quantum AI. At the June 2025 VivaTech conference in Paris, Huang stressed that quantum computing will complement AI supercomputers, particularly in drug discovery and materials research, and announced the establishment of the NVIDIA Accelerated Quantum Computing Center (NVAQC). This aligns closely with AU’s vision for Quantum AI and signals the dawn of a new technological era.

Academician Prof. Kang-Lung Wang noted that President Tsai has great vision—having first introduced AI into healthcare, and now extending it to quantum technology

At the opening ceremony, President Tsai presented Prof. Wang with the appointment certificate as Honorary Director. Prof. Wang, a world leader in spintronics, semiconductor electronics, and nanotechnology, has received numerous awards including the Semiconductor Research Corporation Invention Award, the European MRS Best Paper Award, and the Chinese Institute of Engineers-USA Distinguished Achievement Award. Using an analogy, Prof. Wang explained that traditional computers are like top students solving problems step by step, often taking a long time, while quantum computers are like an entire class solving problems in parallel, exchanging insights, and even outperforming the teacher—showcasing the power of quantum computing.

AU is also strengthening industry collaboration. In partnership with AMD, the university established the AMD Logic and Computation Laboratory to cultivate high-level AI semiconductor talents and plans to extend cooperation into quantum research. AMD has been promoting open standards and open-source tools, contributing to frameworks such as ROCm™, PyTorch, vLLM, SGLang, and TensorFlow. Collaborating with Oak Ridge National Laboratory, AMD is advancing hybrid quantum-classical computing for applications in drug discovery, cryptography, supply chain optimization, and machine learning.

Phison Electronics founder K.S. Pua praised AU’s foresight in establishing the Center. He noted that Phison’s patented aiDAPTIV+ technology enhances quantum computing performance in AI model fine-tuning and inference while reducing energy consumption. Its AI Training Computer (AITPC), equipped with aiDAPTIV+, supports large-scale AI model training, accelerating medical data analysis and AI application development, thereby fostering internationally competitive interdisciplinary AI talents.

Prof. Kuan-Tsae Huang, Chair Professor of Computer Science and Director of the Center, described Quantum AI as a “quantum microscope” capable of uncovering hidden structures at the molecular, neurological, and magnetic levels. He noted that Quantum AI is entering clinical applications in smart healthcare, enabling the development of diagnostic architectures and disease simulation processes with higher accuracy and faster convergence than traditional machine learning. By extracting key patterns from limited data, the technology reduces medical data costs and holds strong upgrade potential, with practical adoption expected before 2030.

Asia University President Jeffrey J.P. Tsai (left) presents the appointment certificate of Honorary Director to Academician Prof. Kang-Lung Wang

Prof. Kuan-Tsae Huang, Director of AU’s Quantum AI Research Center, explained that Quantum AI is not only faster but also capable of uncovering hidden structures at the molecular, neural, and magnetic levels, serving as a modern-day "quantum microscope."

For example, in neural simulation and psychiatric disease modeling, conventional neural network models cannot capture microscopic quantum effects. Quantum generative models, however, can simulate neural state distributions and integrate quantum reinforcement learning to replicate neural signal decision pathways, potentially leading to more accurate diagnostic models for Alzheimer’s and depression. In multimodal medical imaging, quantum convolutional neural networks and quantum superposition for data embedding can significantly improve early cancer and brain lesion diagnoses, reducing misdiagnosis rates and diagnostic time.

AU has long advanced quantum-related initiatives, including its collaboration with Amazon AWS Cloud Innovation Center, quantum computing workshops, online forums, and student participation in international quantum hackathons, earning multiple awards. The university has also partnered with local industries such as CyCraft Quantum Security and Phison Electronics to promote post-quantum cryptography and unmanned systems research, supporting Taiwan’s national strategy for post-quantum information security. The launch of the Center underscores AU’s ambition to embrace the next wave of technological innovation.

AU founder Chang-Hai Tsai previously noted at the 2025 Academic Retreat that the university will focus on three strategic areas: the AI Semiconductor Design and Sustainable Manufacturing Research Center, the Precision Health Research Center, and the Quantum AI Research Center. Guided by innovation, AU will continue driving digital transformation and sustainable development, advancing toward becoming a world-class university.

President Tsai concluded that the Center will cultivate specialists in quantum supercomputing software and applied computing, serving as consultants to solve industry challenges. AU plans to introduce quantum computing courses using AMD, NVIDIA, IBM, Amazon, and Microsoft Azure platforms, while strengthening partnerships with global research institutions. By doing so, AU will accelerate Taiwan’s progress in applied AI and computational technologies, with healthcare as a priority, ensuring Taiwan’s medical industry continues to be recognized worldwide under the banner of “Taiwan Can Help”

Asia University President Jeffrey J.P. Tsai (second from right), Honorary Director of the Quantum AI Research Center Prof. Kang-Lung Wang (second from left), Center Director Prof. Kuan-Tsae Huang (first from right), and Deputy Director Jia-Le Wu (first from left) at the Center

Representatives of AU faculty members at the Quantum AI Research Center

At the inauguration of the Quantum AI Research Center: Asia University President Jeffrey J.P. Tsai (fourth from right), Honorary Director Prof. Kang-Lung Wang (fifth from right), Center Director Prof. Kuan-Tsae Huang (third from right), and Phison Electronics spokesperson Kuo-Ting Lu, among others

At the inauguration of the Quantum AI Research Center: Asia University President Jeffrey J.P. Tsai (front row, second from left), Honorary Director Prof. Kang-Lung Wang (front row, second from right), and Phison Electronics spokesperson Kuo-Ting Lu (front row, far right), together with other distinguished guests