Google claims breakthrough in quantum computing

Google says it has developed a computer algorithm that points the way to practical applications for quantum computing and will be able to generate unique data for use with artificial intelligence.

The new algorithm is called Quantum Echoes, and it is allegedly 13,000 times faster than the most sophisticated classical computing algorithm on supercomputers, Google also said.

Google makes quantum breakthrough 

In the future, it is expected that the Quantum Echoes algorithm may be able to help measure molecular structure in molecules, which could encourage new drug discovery and help material science through identifying new types of materials, company executives told a media briefing last week.

Big firms like Alphabet’s Google, Amazon, and Microsoft have ramped up their investments in quantum computing, a sector still largely untapped and unexplored, which promises rapid advancements in computing and solutions to problems out of reach for today’s machines.

The new algorithm builds on Google’s previous success in that area, the Willow. The Willow is a quantum chip that was unveiled last year by Google, which reportedly has the ability to overcome a crucial problem with “qubits”, the building blocks of quantum computing.

The development of the algorithm was roughly equivalent in significance to the chip, company executives have said. They also say that the algorithm is verifiable with other quantum computers or via controlled experiments.

This is a deliberate move by Google to ensure the world knows that the data is verifiable, which eliminates any doubt that it can lead to practical applications. “If I can’t tell you the data is correct, if I can’t prove to you the data is correct, how can I do anything with it?” Google staff research scientist Tom O’Brien reasoned.

Google’s engineers hope to be able to use the algorithm to create new data sets for use in areas such as life sciences, where good data sets do not exist to train AI models with.

Reactions to the new development 

The announcement from Google has triggered optimistic but cautious reactions with the likes of computer scientist Scott Aaronson calling it “thrilling” for solving a major verification challenge in the field, but noting that scaling to 1 million+ qubits remains a huge hurdle. 

Critics have also been vocal. Some have pointed out that while this could outperform supercomputers on a niche task, it’s not yet applicable for everyday problems. As far as they are concerned, real impact requires error-corrected, fault-tolerant systems, and that is still years away.

Within the crypto community, it has sparked debate. Cryptopolitan has reported concerns about quantum computers theoretically being able to break the elliptic curve cryptography (ECDSA) used in Bitcoin via Shor’s algorithm, potentially making private keys vulnerable. 

While the Willow-scale system is admirable, experts have said that it is nowhere near capable of cracking a Bitcoin key, as that would require millions of stable qubits, not the current 100. 

Google itself has avoided addressing crypto threats, instead choosing to focus on scientific simulations.