EY Canada grows its quantum capability to keep data in the country

EY Canada has installed a quantum computer at one of its own sites, keeping fraud detection, risk modelling, and optimization work for sensitive clients inside Canadian borders.

Announced on July 29, the firm frames the quantum expansion as part of a global investment of more than $3 billion USD in AI and next-generation technologies. 

“We’re shifting the conversation on quantum computing from concept to practical use for our clients in Canada and globally,” said Biren Agnihotri, chief technology officer of EY Canada.

“Quantum computing has the ability to solve complex challenges that classical computing alone cannot address. By combining local and global talent, ecosystem collaboration and leading-edge in-house quantum infrastructure, we’re accelerating how organizations translate quantum innovation into real-world capability.”

The expansion builds on a patent EY Canada announced in February, a hybrid classical-quantum method for surfacing higher-quality decisions faster in constrained systems like supply networks, energy and operational planning.

Owning the computer in-house gives EY control over where data lives, who can access it, and how it’s managed. The firm says this helps clients meet the regulatory, security, and privacy requirements that cloud-based options can’t always satisfy.

“The real power of quantum will be in pairing breakthrough capability with responsible use,” said Joe Depa, EY’s global chief innovation officer. “That means protecting sensitive data while using quantum to solve problems that matter most to business and society, from cybersecurity to precision medicine.”

EY points to financial services, energy, supply chain, and government as early applications, and names optimization, fraud detection, data protection, and large-scale risk management as the use cases it’s targeting. 

It’s running the systems on itself first, an approach it calls Client Zero, before pointing clients to them.

Raj Sharma, EY’s global managing partner for growth and innovation, put quantum’s full potential five years out, and said leaders should spend that runway building “strong foundations of data, trust, and governance” before the technology matures.

Final shots

• Data residency is a key component, allowing sensitive workloads to run without leaving Canada.
• Early applications are fraud detection, risk modelling, and optimization across financial services, energy, supply chain, and government
• EY Canada leads the build as a key innovation hub for the firm.