IBM and Dallara Group use AI and quantum computing to speed up vehicle design

The partners train physics-based models on Dallara’s aerodynamic data to cut CFD simulation times and explore broader applications in motorsport, road vehicles and aerospace

IBM and the Dallara Group have announced a collaboration to advance vehicle design and optimization using AI and explore the use of quantum computing. The work combines Dallara's experience in high-performance vehicle engineering with IBM's AI for physics and quantum computing to accelerate aerodynamic design and enable more advanced simulation workflows. One early physics-based AI foundation model was trained on Dallara's proprietary and validated aerodynamic data of a high-performance vehicle, and preliminary tests showed that results were remarkably close to those from typical computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations when modeling pressure fields for an Le Mans Prototype 2 (LMP2)-like race car's rear diffuser angle changes.