North Wales Police pilots hybrid quantum emergency response

North Wales Police (NWP) has worked with D-Wave on a proof-of-concept hybrid quantum computing application to optimise the placement of police vehicles for emergency response.

The pair reported that the hybrid quantum approach was able to deliver faster, more accurate and more efficient emergency response, allowing NWP to reduce the average incident response time by nearly 50%.

Hybrid quantum computing works like an accelerator, combining the capabilities of quantum computers to solve complex problems with classical computing’s strength in processing logic operations sequentially at scale.

According to D-Wave, the challenge with using classical optimisation technology is that NWP officers need to cover large geographies under difficult constraints and dynamic variables. These include ambitious response-time targets, limited staffing, demanding operational duties, and ever-shifting deployment needs driven by factors such as crime patterns, public events and emergencies.

It is a variation of the travelling salesman problem, which attempts to find the fastest route for a salesman to visit a large number of cities. This is often cited as a task that can be optimised by quantum computing.

But the pilot also takes in other factors, which suggests NWP is also applying predictive analytics to optimise placement of police vehicles – technology that some industry watchers fear can lead to bias and unwarranted profiling of individuals and communities.

Working with D-Wave, NWP tested the use of hybrid quantum computing for “forward deployment”, where officers are placed strategically in high-risk areas to enable faster response times, enhance visibility and deter crime.

D-Wave said the application, which uses a hybrid quantum solver available through D-Wave’s Leap quantum cloud service, outperformed NWP’s classical approach to optimisation by reducing police vehicle coordination time from four months to four minutes, significantly improving real-time adaptability. The test also demonstrated that NWP could respond to at least 90% of incidents within its target response time using the hybrid quantum application.

“Optimising forward deployment is a challenge for most police forces,” said Alistair Hughes, lead for analytics and artificial intelligence at North Wales Police. “A reduction in response time can reduce crime, reduce offence escalation and increase public confidence. We believe D-Wave’s hybrid quantum application could be scaled nationally to save time, reduce costs, improve outcomes and lower our carbon footprint.”

The proof-of-technology project was supported by a grant from the Test and Learn Fund that NWP secured from the UK policing national science and innovation board. Following the successful project, the Office of the Chief Scientific Adviser for Policing recognised it to be of national cross-government departmental interest, with opportunities for future development and deployment. The project highlights the importance and value of cross-border collaboration.

“As police forces increasingly rely on data-driven strategies to improve response times and coverage, hybrid quantum computing can offer the speed, precision and intelligence needed to identify optimal officer placements and enhance public safety,” said Alan Baratz, CEO of D-Wave.

“Hybrid quantum computing is beginning to show real-world potential across private and public sectors, and we’re thrilled to see the potential for it to make a meaningful impact in forward deployment with North Wales Police,” he added.