World Community Grid

World Community Grid enables anyone with a computer, smartphone or tablet to donate their unused computing power to advance cutting-edge scientific research on topics related to health, poverty and sustainability. Through the contributions of volunteers all over the globe, World Community Grid has supported 31 research projects to date, including searches for more effective treatments for cancer, HIV/AIDS and under-researched tropical diseases. Other projects are looking for low-cost water filtration systems and new materials for capturing solar energy efficiently. In 2021, IBM transferred the World Community Grid assets to Krembil Research Institute, part of the University Health Network (UHN). While sharing the goals and principles of WCG, Krembil Research Institute aims to expand the mission of citizen science, youth outreach and integrative computational biology. UHN has Canada’s largest hospital-based research program, comprising four major teaching hospitals (Toronto Western Hospital, Toronto General Hospital, Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, Toronto Rehabilitation Institute, and The Michener Institute of Education). In total, UHN devotes C$450 million a year to research and trains more than 3,200 undergraduate, graduate and medical students at its member hospitals and institutes in association with the University of Toronto.