How Bosch and IBM are using supercomputers to boost critical EV mineral supply
Bosch, a leading global auto parts and tech supplier is working with another technology giant, IBM, on a “strategic quantum computing” partnership. Through the arrangement, Bosch will join the IBM Quantum Network as experts from both teams investigate alternatives for critical minerals used to power electric vehicles.
One of the most significant factors holding back the electric vehicle rollout is the limited supply of critical earth minerals used in EV batteries and motors like lithium, cobalt, and nickel.
With the largest global economies all moving toward zero-emission electric vehicles, sales are only expected to accelerate in the next few years. Furthermore, the recently passed Inflation Reduction Act in the US outlines strict EV battery assembly and mineral sourcing requirements to qualify for the $7,500 tax credit. The question becomes, how can we fill the supply gap?
Most automakers are racing to sign supply agreements to ensure they have the materials to meet their targets. Meanwhile, companies like Li-Cycle and Nth Cycle are developing innovative ways to recycle and process battery minerals to ensure future supply.
Bosch and IBM are teaming up to take it a step further, using quantum supercomputers to simulate different models investigating which materials may have alternatives or at least partial substitutes.
Bosch taps IBM to boost electric vehicle minerals
After announcing it has converted a building previously used to build diesel powertrain components into an electric vehicle motor manufacturing space at its Charleston, South Carolina facility, Bosch aims to accelerate the EV rollout further with mineral alternatives.
Bosch will bring its experience in materials simulation and mass production, combining it with IBM’s quantum computing tech and knowledge of quantum algorithms.
The partners have already started working together by laying the foundations for advanced algorithms and workflows, therefore allowing for computer-generated material designs.
The Head of Bosch Research, Thomas Kropf, explains:
For Bosch, materials for applications in the fields of electromobility, renewable energies and sensor technology play a particularly prominent role here.
Developing alternatives to these materials needed to build electric vehicles can accelerate the rollout while keeping prices affordable.
Scott Crowder, VP of IBM Quantum Adoption and Business Development, adds:
Even simple models of real materials tend to quickly become intractable for classical computers to simulate. That’s why Bosch’s collaboration with IBM, as well as the extended IBM Quantum Network on quantum computing research is so important. We will work together on addressing a wide range of materials science problems, in the fields of electromobility, renewable energy and sensor technology.
Bosch’s CEO, Dr. Stefan Hartung, says the company is also interested in “new magnets for electric motors that are lighter, more compact, more efficient, and more readily available. Adding these new developments “promise to be more environmentally friendly than rare earths.”
Electrek’s Take
Bosch and IBM teaming up to develop alternatives for rare earth metals holds promise. Quantum computers are extremely powerful, utilizing a variety of algorithms to process extensive amounts of data in seconds.
Perhaps, more importantly, seeing two technology conglomerates combining their experience and knowledge to find solutions will help drive mass electric vehicle adoption.
If they can develop alternatives, it can promote lower EV costs by making it easier for automakers to obtain, opening up the market of buyers looking to for zero emission travel options.
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Paris’ bike-share system, Vélib has long been considered one of the shining success stories of urban micromobility. With a massive fleet of over 20,000 pedal and electric-assist bicycles around Paris, the service has helped millions of residents and tourists get around the City of Light without needing a car or scooter. But lately, a growing problem is threatening to knock the wheels off this urban mobility marvel: theft and joyriding.
According to city officials and the service operator, more than 600 Vélib bikes are now going missing every single week. That’s over 30 bikes a day simply vanishing from the system – some stolen outright, others taken on “joy rides” and never returned.
“At the moment we’re missing 3,000 bikes,” explained Sylvain Raifaud, head of the Agemob company that currently operates the Velib system. That’s nearly 15% of over 20,000 Vélib bikes across Paris.
The sticky-fingered culprits aren’t necessarily professional thieves or organized crime rings. Instead, they’re often regular users who treat the shared bikes like disposable toys.
The city estimates that many people have figured out how to pry the bikes out of the system’s parking docks, unlocking one for a casual cruise and then ditching it somewhere far from a docking station.
Once pried free, the bikes are technically usable for the next 24 hours until their automatic locking feature kicks in. At that point, the bikes are often simply abandoned. Some end up in alleyways. Others get tossed in rivers. A few just disappear completely.
And since the bikes are intended to be parked at their many docking stations around the city, they don’t have GPS chips, further complicating recovery of “liberated” bikes.
The issue started small but has grown into more than an inconvenience – it’s beginning to undermine the entire purpose of the service. With bikes going missing at such a high rate, many Vélib docking stations are left empty, especially during rush hours.
Riders looking for a quick commute or a convenient hop across town are increasingly finding themselves without available bikes, or having to walk long distances to find a functioning one.
That kind of unreliability chips away at user confidence and threatens to drive potential riders back into cars, cabs, or other less sustainable forms of transport at a time when Paris has already made great strides to dramatically reduce car usage in the city.
The losses are financially painful, too. Replacing stolen or vandalized bikes isn’t cheap, and the resources spent on tracking down missing equipment or reinforcing anti-theft measures are stretching thin. Vélib has faced theft and vandalism issues before, especially during its early years, but this latest surge has officials sounding the alarm with renewed urgency.
Officials acknowledge that there’s no easy fix. Paris, like many cities with bike-share systems, walks a fine line between accessibility and accountability. Part of what makes Vélib so successful is its ease of use and widespread availability. But those same features make it vulnerable to misuse – especially when enforcement is limited and the consequences for abuse are minimal.
The timing of the problem is especially unfortunate. In recent years, Paris has seen impressive results in reducing car traffic, expanding bike lanes, and promoting cycling as a key part of its sustainable transport strategy. Vélib is a cornerstone of that plan. But if the system becomes too unreliable, it risks losing the very people it was designed to serve.
Meanwhile, as Parisians increasingly find themselves staring at empty docks, the challenge for the city and Vélib will be to restore confidence in the system without making it harder to use. That means striking the right balance between freedom and responsibility, between open access and protection against abuse.
In a city where cycling is supposed to be the future of mobility, losing thousands of bikes to joyriders and sticky fingers isn’t just frustrating; it’s unsustainable.
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