Latest news with #quantumcomputers
Yahoo
a day ago
- Yahoo
How Quantum Computing Could Upend Bitcoin
Investors in Bitcoin should pay attention. Experts say that ultrapowerful quantum computers could eventually crack the security codes of blockchain, the underlying technology for Bitcoin. Roughly a quarter of all Bitcoins are now protected with algorithms that could be cracked by quantum computers in five or 10 years, Gartner analyst Avivah Litan tells Barron's. Those are mostly older Bitcoins housed in digital vaults, or wallets, that date back as far as 15 years. Solve the daily Crossword
Gizmodo
2 days ago
- Science
- Gizmodo
Quantum Computers Are Here and They're Real. You Just Haven't Noticed Yet
The promise of quantum computers appears to be that they will upend modern computing as we know it. With exceptional computational power, they'll be performing feats unimaginable for any classical supercomputer. The reality of quantum computers hasn't quite lived up to its hype, however. Claims of 'quantum advantage'—problems regular computers can't solve but quantum computers can—draw criticism from both skeptics and enthusiasts in the field. Certainly, we've seen genuinely impressive advancements, both theoretical and experimental, but many have been contrived 'feats' with little real-world applicability. When Will Quantum Computers Outperform Regular Computers? I'm inching toward becoming an enthusiast. But even for me, parsing through the—let's face it—sometimes overhyped noise feels tiresome and pointless. So let's take a step back. What will quantum technology really do for us? How far have we come? And how should we handle the flow of PR on the sixth so-called ultimate quantum breakthrough of the week? To discuss these questions (or rather, to sift through the noise), Gizmodo traveled uptown to IBM's Manhattan office to chat with Jerry Chow, director of IBM Quantum. The following conversation has been slightly edited for grammar and clarity. Gayoung Lee, Gizmodo: Okay, imagine I'm someone who is just like, 'Oh, quantum computing is a load of nonsense.' Why should I care at all about quantum advantage? Jerry Chow: In the end, I think our goal is to bring useful quantum computing to the world. And a big part of quantum computing is that we have the opportunity to build differentiating computation over what exists today. There's a mathematical statement to that, or there are provable algorithms that really show that quantum computing can really [outperform] classical computing, like factoring large numbers for breaking encryption or simulating very complex molecular structures, the Grover's algorithm, and all that pen-and-paper provable direction. But another question is, what can we do with the things that people are already building? That's very far apart from saying that there's an advantage for a particular kind of problem, or it's an advantage in terms of being better than all classical techniques that you might throw at it. When you want to solve a problem, you have at your disposal the GPUs, CPUs, all the world's computers, and all the world's algorithms to throw at that problem, right? Quantum advantage, really, is that we can now use quantum computing plus what we have available to us—classical resources—to solve a problem cheaper, faster, or more accurately. Gizmodo: That's quite the departure from that popular press hook that goes, 'Quantum computing will change computing forever!' Chow: I see quantum advantage more as something incremental. It's not that it necessarily changes everything that we can compute. That's also how a lot of GPUs [graphics processing units] also scaled up. Obviously they were used for games—maybe a niche area—but they really got large with national computing strategies leveraging it for clustered HPCs [high-performance computers] and for people studying molecular structure, cosmology, and high-energy physics problems that use a lot of computational capability. We expect something similar too, for quantum to now be an 'augmented tool.' Gizmodo: The idea of augmentation is really interesting, because the two—classical and quantum computers—are inherently connected, right? Confirming that quantum computers work properly requires cross-checking using classical computers. How do researchers leverage this relationship to their benefit? Chow: That's an absolutely important part of how this all happens. Everything is interconnected with classical computing. The only way we know how to experience computation is classical—we put classical inputs in, and we take classical inputs out. Quantum computers use quantum mechanics and quantum circuits to explore some exponentially large space, but in the end we're performing measurements that turn everything back into classical outputs that we then further process or use or leverage in parts of our computation using other parts of our computational arsenal. People shouldn't fear that quantum will replace classical! Gizmodo: IBM's clearly a big player in this field, and you've been involved with its quantum research for 15 years. What's something you're particularly proud of in the realm of realizing that approach to quantum advantage? Chow: When I started, we had maybe eight to ten people, very much focused on just building better devices. Then around the mid-2010s, we made the decision to take what we've built and actually put it on the cloud to take things out of the physics laboratory and into a computational experience. Suddenly, we started thinking less about it as turning knobs and controlling voltages and more in terms of how to actually use this as a computational tool and computational platform. Today, most of our systems are deployed in quantum data centers around the world as well as on client locations. And we're starting to see a lot of that engagement. For example, our collaborators from the RIKEN Institute in Japan are using quantum plus their HPC to study molecular structure. Since then we've been able to start to push that energy level [needed for calculations] down closer and closer to this hallmark level of what's best done classically, at which point we start to really be able to do these comparisons. Gizmodo: What's an important part of IBM's strategy in this field? Chow: Now, just building it is not enough. We need to derive quantum computers' usefulness, and a big part of that is the community. We need them to really demand the necessity for advanced computers and work with us to find quantum advantage and useful applications. That's a big part of our ecosystem strategy and why we have a quantum network of nearly 300 members. We're not the industry experts in various verticals, but the opportunity is there for health care, life sciences, oil and gas, and energy industries. Gizmodo: So quantum computers aren't actually a thing of the future. They're already here. Chow: Yes. Quantum computers are real things that are usable. Obviously there's a lot of marketing, a lot of buzz out there. But also, like, literally, you can go and run quantum circuits for free on our machines over the web. There's so much to learn in terms of learning content that's out there. There's a huge community base of people to help you get started. You can tell ChatGPT to install Qiskit. People don't need to just experience it through marketing; get your hands dirty! Gizmodo: Okay. If quantum advantage is incremental, what, then, is the next quantum milestone? What are you most looking forward to in the next ten, maybe five years—or even in the next few months, perhaps—for quantum computing? Chow: We're already driving towards a new device that we want to introduce to users by the end of the year, called Nighthawk. I think the next big milestone will probably be a series of milestones from the advantage point of view, where you're going to see more and more 'sticks' in the ground of running more complex circuits using quantum computers, with classical tackling back, so this back-and-forth over the next year. We'll be deeply engaged with the high-performance computing community.
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Lean Ethereum proposal could send the blockchain into its ‘Ozempic era'
A version of this article appeared in our The Decentralised newsletter on August 5. Sign up here. Last week Ethereum turned 10, and now the world's second-most valuable blockchain must cut the baby fat, argues Justin Drake, an Ethereum Foundation researcher. His vision, named Lean Ethereum, aims to streamline the blockchain's bloated code, and shield it from future encryption-smashing quantum computers. The diet could also unlock performance improvements, including boosting transaction throughput, Drake said. 'Lean Ethereum is a generational oath to keep Ethereum online no matter what — to scale it without compromise,' he wrote. At this stage, it's just a proposal. But it appears to have the Foundation's tacit approval: the Foundation published an explainer on its blog on July 31. Lean Ethereum comes six months after the blockchain faced a mini-crisis, as longtime supporters agonised over its cryptocurrency's lacklustre performance as the price of Solana and other rivals skyrocketed. Now, Ethereum appears to have reclaimed its mojo. Exchange-traded funds and so-called treasury companies are gobbling up Ether. US lawmakers have also passed legislation that allows banks and tech giants to issue stablecoins, a class of crypto asset dominated by Ethereum. Lean Ethereum has its roots in a talk Drake delivered at last year's Devcon conference where he proposed the 'beam chain,' an update to Ethereum's so-called Beacon chain. As Tim Craig explained at the time, Ethereum is made up of two layers: the Beacon chain, which handles Ether staking and keeps track of transactions, and the execution layer, where users submit transactions. Fast-forward to May, and Drake told colleagues his vision had broadened. This was spurred, in part, by his receiving a cease-and-desist letter from another project that had trademarked the word 'Beam.' 'If we do change [the name],' Drake told colleagues in May, it should be 'a really strong meme.' Finding a new name with memetic potential could be an opportunity for the rest of Ethereum, Drake added. The beam chain was supposed to be better than the beacon chain. But it was also supposed to be simpler, to feature more streamlined code. Leaner, if you will. There are 'huge opportunities' in trimming the execution layer as well, Drake said. 'Ethereum entering the Ozempic era,' quipped Sophia Gold, an Ethereum Foundation engineer, in the comments, referencing the popular diet drug. The result? A massive transaction bump, according to Drake's July 31 blog post. A lean Ethereum could deliver eye-popping throughput: 10,000 transactions per second on Ethereum itself, 10 million on layer 2 blockchains, Drake wrote. That's 49,900% and 4,999,900% more than what Ethereum has processed in recent months, according to data from L2BEAT. While it's generally understood that scale comes at the expense of decentralisation, Drake argued that Lean Ethereum can achieve both. Advances in zero-knowledge technology, data availability sampling, and hash-based cryptography will allow Ethereum fans to have their cake and eat it too, he argued. Top DeFi stories of the week This week in DeFi governance VOTE: Arbitrum DAO votes to update delegate incentive program VOTE: CoW DAO votes to adopt new rewards mechanism to limit 'toxic' volume PROPOSAL: dYdX Foundation proposes new $8 million grants program Post of the week Jurors are deliberating in the criminal trial of Tornado Cash co-founder Roman Storm. It's hard work, but they get to go home early today — one of the jurors has a birthday party to attend. She'll have to miss the scheduled pedicure, though. Aleks Gilbert is DL News' New York-based DeFi correspondent. Got a tip? Email at aleks@ Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Wall Street Journal
01-08-2025
- Science
- Wall Street Journal
Here's How Quantum Computing Could Change the World
With commercial grade quantum computers inching closer to reality, industries are already investigating their impact on everything, from food to medicine to streaming football games. Quantum computers are expected to power certain computations that would take today's conventional computers years to solve, if they could at all.
Yahoo
17-07-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
A Quantum Battery Has Outperformed a Classical One for the First Time Ever
Here's what you'll learn when you read this story: For more than a decade, scientists have been investigating ways to develop a 'quantum battery' that stores energy using photons rather than electrons or ions. While quantum batteries—thanks to properties like superabsorption and quantum entanglement—could theoretically charge more quickly than their classical counterparts, there's been little evidence to show this sort of 'quantum advantage.' In a new study, scientists have developed a model battery that reaches the known quantum speed limit and provides a measurable advantage over classical batteries, but building such a device remains remarkably complicated. Over the last few decades, it seems that every classical piece of technology has gotten a quantum counterpart. Of course, people spend the most time and resources trying to develop quantum computers, but there's also advancements in things like the quantum internet, quantum cryptography, and yes, quantum AI. However, one of these technologies that doesn't get much time in the spotlight is quantum batteries. As their name suggests, quantum batteries store energy using photons—particles of light and the carrier for the electromagnetic force—rather than electrons or ions, as is the case with classical electrochemical batteries. But since their introduction in 2012, scientists have yet to convincingly establish the technology's 'quantum advantage'—does a quantum battery really surpass the function and capability of regular, old classical batteries? Quantum batteries do have a few unique tricks up their sleeves, however. Due to attributes such as quantum entanglement and superabsorption—where the rate of absorption of light increases with the number of molecules—quantum batteries could charge much quicker than even the very best classical batteries. And now, a new study shows the first evidence of quantum advantage in this new type of battery. In an article published in the journal Physical Review Letters, scientists from the PSL Research University in Paris and the University of Pisa describe how they developed a simple quantum battery model at a microscopic scale. So, no—this one won't be charging your iPhone anytime soon. But this battery does provide a major boost for efforts to develop these potentially game-changing pieces of tech. 'Our model consists of two coupled harmonic oscillators: one acts as the 'charger,' and the other serves as the 'battery,'' the authors told 'The key ingredient enabling the quantum advantage is an anharmonic interaction between the two oscillators during the charging process. This anharmonic coupling allows the system to access non-classical, entangled states […] enabling faster energy transfer than in classical dynamics.' The researchers also showed that the battery could theoretically reach the quantum speed limit (QSL), which is the maximum rate of change in a quantum system. This would definitely exceed the performance of classical batteries. This isn't the first theoretical model of a quantum battery. Last year, a group of researchers developed a model quantum battery the size of an atom that also used intermediate cavities to avoid 'decoherence,' which is the process through which a system loses its quantum properties. But both of these examples are just theoretical models—building such a device that's practical is something else entirely. It's for this reason that researchers believe quantum batteries are still pretty far removed from everyday applications. The authors of this new paper say that their battery would need to be built using superconducting circuits, which experience zero electrical resistance at near-absolute zero temperatures. 'To the best of our knowledge, this work provides the first rigorous certification of a genuine quantum advantage in a solvable model,' the authors told 'We hope that our work will stimulate further research on this exciting topic, fostering progress on both the theoretical and experimental fronts.' You Might Also Like The Do's and Don'ts of Using Painter's Tape The Best Portable BBQ Grills for Cooking Anywhere Can a Smart Watch Prolong Your Life?
