International Business Machines Corp. and Advanced Micro Devices Inc. have agreed to jointly develop “quantum-centric” supercomputers that link IBM’s quantum processors with AMD’s high-performance CPUs, GPUs and FPGAs. The companies said the hybrid architecture is intended to tackle workloads—such as drug discovery, materials science and large-scale optimisation—that are beyond the reach of classical machines alone. An initial demonstration of the technology is planned for later this year, with the two firms exploring open-source software frameworks, including IBM’s Qiskit, to speed the creation of new algorithms. The effort aligns with IBM’s roadmap to achieve fault-tolerant quantum computing before the end of the decade and builds on AMD hardware that already powers the world’s fastest supercomputers. The announcement lifted both stocks, with AMD rising about 4% in early New York trading. Separately, Truist Securities upgraded AMD to Buy from Hold and raised its price target to $213 from $173, citing stronger demand for the chipmaker’s artificial-intelligence accelerators.