Quantum Computing Explained: The Next Frontier of Technology
Alright, so let's talk quantum computing - the technology that sounds like it's from a sci-fi movie, but is being built right now. It's one of those things that could potentially change the game in how we solve some types of problems , once we find out how to get it to work reliably.
How Are Quantum Computers Different
Typical computers think in bits - a series of 0 or 1, yes or no, or black or white. But quantum computers use qubits - which can be 0 and 1 - at the same time. This weird and wild concept is called superposition. Another crazy thing is that qubits can be entangled - meaning the state of one qubit can instantaneously affect the state of another, everywhere it is in the universe. Imagine you and your buddy on opposite sides of the planet rolling two different dice, but when you roll yours they magically match!
All of this allows quantum computers to explore an absurd number of possibilities at once, compared to crunching through one at a time like a typical CPU.
So What’s the Big Deal?
Because these devices can hold so many different possibilities at once; they can solve problems that are essentially impossible for classical computers to resolve — simulating complex molecules, optimizing massive systems, breaking certain encryption types, etc.
The Department of Energy is especially fond of them for simulating quantum systems (again, because they are quantum systems). Like trying to combat fire with fire.
Where Are We in Quantum?
The problem is that we are still in a noisy intermediate scale quantum (NISQ) stage of quantum computing — a way of saying “powerful in the abstract, but quite noisy in practice.” Qubits are really sensitive; they can be disturbed with a slight vibration, or even heat. That’s why these machines are often chilled to zero and near zero.
All of the big tech companies in this sector are racing to find a solution. Amazon is developing a cat qubit that could decrease error correction requirements by up to ninety percent. In a recent demonstration, Google’s “Willow” chip solved a problem that took longer than the age of the universe to a classical computer end-to-end; in minutes. IBM, Microsoft, and several others are trying out new qubit designs to produce a more stable qubit.
So…When Are We Going To Have Them?
This is the million (or maybe billion) dollar question... Some say ten years; some say 30 years. Even the most optimistic acknowledge that we are still trying to work out the basics of fault tolerance for large-scale quantum computing.
But quantum computers are doing interesting things now. Last year, IBM and Moderna simulated the longest mRNA sequence ever (without the use of AI) to assist with vaccine research. Just the tip of the iceberg.
Why You Should Care
Quantum computing is not simply "a faster computer"; it is a new, fundamentally different way of thinking about computation. When (not if) we solve the reliability problem, quantum computing can have a profound impact on industries from medicine, finance, logistics, etc.
So yes…this is still early, but if the last few years of progress is any indicator, the "quantum future" may be here sooner than we think and it will fundamentally change everything.
Sources:
https://www.energy.gov/science/doe-explainsquantum-computing