Quantum Computing Expert Explains One Concept in 5 Levels of Difficulty | WIRED

Summary

In this engaging script, Talia Gershon, a scientist at IBM Research, introduces quantum computing, a revolutionary approach to problem-solving. She explains the fundamental principles of superposition, entanglement, and interference, which enable quantum computers to perform complex calculations beyond the capabilities of classical computers. Gershon discusses the current state of quantum computing, its potential applications in fields like medicine and machine learning, and the challenges faced in scaling and error correction. The script also highlights the accessibility of quantum computers through the cloud and the ongoing exploration of their practical uses.

Takeaways

• 🌟 Quantum computing is a fundamentally new approach to computation that can potentially solve problems beyond the reach of classical computers.
• 💻 Classical computers use a binary system of zeros and ones to process information, while quantum computers use qubits that can exist in multiple states simultaneously, thanks to quantum properties.
• 🔮 Quantum mechanics, a branch of physics, forms the basis of quantum computing, allowing for the study and manipulation of very small, well-isolated, and cold particles.
• 🪙 The concept of superposition in quantum computing allows qubits to be in a state that is a combination of 0 and 1, unlike classical bits that are strictly 0 or 1.
• 🤝 Entanglement is another quantum property where two qubits become connected in such a way that the state of one immediately affects the state of the other, regardless of distance.
• 🧊 Quantum computers require extremely low temperatures to function, using devices like dilution refrigerators to cool the quantum chips and maintain quantum states.
• 🔬 Quantum computers are being explored for complex tasks such as simulating chemical bonds and accelerating machine learning processes, which are challenging for classical computers.
• 🛠️ The development of quantum computing involves creating new layers of abstraction and programming languages to make it accessible for programmers.
• 🔄 Quantum error correction and achieving fault tolerance are significant challenges in the field, as quantum systems are highly sensitive to environmental disturbances.
• 🚀 Quantum computing is still in its early stages, with the current state of the technology being compared to the early days of classical computing with vacuum tubes or transistors.
• 🔒 While quantum computers have the potential to break certain encryption methods, this is not an immediate concern, and there are alternative encryption schemes that are not based on factoring.

Q & A

What is quantum computing?

Quantum computing is a type of computing that uses quantum-mechanical phenomena, such as superposition and entanglement, to perform operations on data. It has the potential to solve certain problems much faster than classical computers.

What makes quantum computers different from classical computers?

Quantum computers differ from classical computers in that they use qubits, which can exist in multiple states simultaneously (superposition) and can be entangled with each other, allowing for a fundamentally different approach to solving problems.

What is the significance of the term 'superposition' in quantum computing?

Superposition is a quantum property where a quantum bit (qubit) can be in a combination of states at the same time, unlike classical bits which are either 0 or 1. This allows quantum computers to process a vast amount of possibilities simultaneously.

Can you explain the concept of 'entanglement' in quantum computing?

Entanglement is a quantum phenomenon where two or more qubits become interconnected in such a way that the state of one qubit can instantly affect the state of another, regardless of the distance between them. This property is key to quantum computing's power for certain tasks.

What is the role of a dilution refrigerator in quantum computing?

A dilution refrigerator is used to cool quantum chips to extremely low temperatures, which is necessary to maintain the quantum states of qubits and prevent them from losing their quantum properties due to environmental interference.

How does quantum computing address the issue of 'running out of space' in classical computing?

Quantum computing can handle problems that may cause classical computers to 'run out of space' by using qubits that can represent multiple states simultaneously, thus offering a much larger computational space for complex problems.

What are some potential applications of quantum computing?

Potential applications of quantum computing include simulating chemical bonding for drug discovery, accelerating machine learning algorithms, and potentially breaking encryption algorithms like RSA, although this is still far from current capabilities.

How can one access quantum computers if they are not yet widely available?

Quantum computers can be accessed through the cloud, where several quantum computers are available for free to anyone around the world, allowing users to experiment with and learn about quantum computing.

What is the current state of quantum computing in terms of qubit count and stability?

As of the script's recording, quantum computers have around 50 qubits, which is a significant achievement. However, they are still prone to errors and decoherence, limiting the duration for which quantum information can be maintained.

What are some of the challenges faced in developing quantum computers?

Challenges in developing quantum computers include maintaining quantum coherence, error correction, scaling up the number of qubits, and creating algorithms that can take advantage of quantum computing's unique properties.

How can someone get involved in the field of quantum computing?

Individuals can get involved in quantum computing by learning about it, experimenting with available quantum computers through the cloud, and considering research or development opportunities in academia or industry.

Outlines

00:00

🚀 Introduction to Quantum Computing

Talia Gershon, a scientist at IBM Research, introduces the concept of quantum computing, a revolutionary approach to computation that operates fundamentally differently from classical computing. She aims to explain quantum computing at various complexity levels, hoping to make the audience understand this new technology. The video uses the analogy of a 'chandelier' to describe a quantum computer, highlighting its uniqueness and the fact that it calculates using a different set of rules. The script also humorously compares binary computation to flipping a coin, emphasizing the quantum computer's ability to exist in a superposition of states, unlike classical computers that operate in a binary state of 0 or 1.

05:01

🌐 Quantum Properties: Superposition and Entanglement

This paragraph delves into the quantum properties of superposition and entanglement. Superposition is explained using the spinning penny analogy, illustrating how a quantum object can exist in a combination of states simultaneously. Entanglement is introduced as a phenomenon where two quantum objects become interconnected, such that the state of one instantly influences the state of the other, regardless of the distance separating them. The script discusses the practical applications of these properties in quantum computing, such as simulating chemical bonds and the potential for quantum computers to tackle complex problems that are currently intractable for classical computers.

10:02

❄️ The Challenge of Quantum State Manipulation

The script explains the technical challenges of maintaining quantum states, such as superposition and entanglement, which require extremely cold conditions to prevent decoherence. It describes the use of a dilution refrigerator to cool quantum chips to near absolute zero temperatures. The paragraph also touches on the potential applications of quantum computers in various fields, including accelerating machine learning algorithms and simulating nature for scientific discovery. It emphasizes the need for new algorithms tailored for quantum computing and the current limitations of quantum hardware, such as the small number of qubits available for use.

15:03

🔍 Quantum Computing Research and Future Prospects

This section discusses the ongoing research in quantum computing, focusing on quantum error correction and the quest for fault tolerance. It addresses the myths and misconceptions surrounding quantum computing, such as the belief that quantum computers will quickly solve complex global issues or break encryption systems. The script highlights the early stage of quantum computing development, comparing it to the early days of classical computing with vacuum tubes and transistors. It also emphasizes the importance of building layers of abstraction to make quantum computing more accessible to programmers and the potential for quantum computers to discover new applications as they become more widely available.

Keywords

💡Quantum Computing

Quantum computing is a revolutionary approach to computation that leverages the principles of quantum mechanics to process information. Unlike classical computers that use bits to represent information as 0s or 1s, quantum computers use quantum bits, or qubits, which can exist in a state of superposition, embodying both 0 and 1 simultaneously. This property allows quantum computers to perform complex calculations at speeds unattainable by traditional computers. In the video, quantum computing is the central theme, with the speaker aiming to demystify its concepts and potential applications.

💡Superposition

Superposition is a fundamental concept in quantum mechanics where a quantum system can exist in multiple states at the same time. In the context of quantum computing, superposition allows qubits to be in a combination of 0 and 1 states, significantly increasing the computational power. The video uses the analogy of a spinning penny to illustrate superposition, where the penny is not just heads or tails but a combination of both while spinning.

💡Entanglement

Entanglement is another quantum phenomenon where two or more particles become interconnected such that the state of one particle is dependent on the state of the other, regardless of the distance between them. In quantum computing, entanglement is used to create correlations between qubits, enabling complex problem-solving capabilities. The script mentions entanglement when discussing how two pennies, once spun and entangled, would always land on the same side, demonstrating the interconnectedness of entangled particles.

💡Qubit

A qubit, short for quantum bit, is the basic unit of quantum information. Unlike a classical bit, a qubit can exist in a superposition of states, which is crucial for the parallelism and computational power of quantum computers. The script explains that qubits are manipulated using microwave pulses to achieve superposition and entanglement, which are essential for quantum computation.

💡Quantum Mechanics

Quantum mechanics is a branch of physics that studies the behavior of matter and energy at the quantum scale, where classical physics no longer applies. It provides the theoretical foundation for quantum computing. The video mentions quantum mechanics as the science that allows for the creation of quantum computers, which operate based on its principles such as superposition and entanglement.

💡Dilution Refrigerator

A dilution refrigerator is a device used in quantum computing to cool quantum chips to extremely low temperatures, typically around 10 milli-Kelvin. This extreme cooling is necessary to maintain the quantum state of qubits and prevent decoherence. The script refers to the dilution refrigerator as a crucial component for creating and observing quantum properties like superposition and entanglement.

💡Decoherence

Decoherence is the process by which quantum systems lose their quantum behavior and behave more classically due to interaction with the environment. It is a significant challenge in quantum computing as it limits the time during which quantum information can be maintained and processed. The video touches on decoherence as a hurdle that quantum computers must overcome to perform reliable computations.

💡Quantum Algorithms

Quantum algorithms are sets of instructions that leverage the properties of quantum bits to solve problems more efficiently than classical algorithms. The script mentions Shor's algorithm for factoring large numbers and Grover's algorithm for unstructured search, highlighting their potential for solving problems that are intractable for classical computers.

💡Fault Tolerance

Fault tolerance in quantum computing refers to the ability of a quantum system to perform accurate computations despite errors or decoherence. Achieving fault tolerance is a significant challenge due to the delicate nature of quantum states. The script discusses the importance of quantum error correction and the concept of fault tolerance as key to realizing practical quantum computing.

💡Quantum Error Correction

Quantum error correction is a set of techniques used to protect quantum information from errors due to decoherence and other quantum noise. It is essential for building reliable quantum computers. The video script mentions quantum error correction as a critical area of research aimed at achieving fault tolerance in quantum computing.

💡Quantum Cryptography

Quantum cryptography uses principles of quantum mechanics to secure communication, providing a way to detect eavesdropping and ensure the integrity of transmitted information. The script briefly touches on quantum cryptography as a potential application of quantum communication channels, which can offer provably secure communication based on the laws of physics.

Highlights

Quantum computing is a fundamentally new approach to computation, offering the potential to solve problems that are currently unsolvable.

Quantum computers use the principles of quantum mechanics to process information differently than traditional computers.

The concept of superposition allows quantum bits (qubits) to exist in multiple states simultaneously, unlike classical bits which are either 0 or 1.

Entanglement is another quantum property where particles become interconnected, affecting each other's state regardless of distance.

Quantum computers operate at extremely low temperatures, close to absolute zero, to maintain quantum states and prevent decoherence.

Quantum computing has the potential to revolutionize fields such as medicine, materials science, and cryptography.

Current quantum computers are in the early stages of development, comparable to the vacuum tube or transistor era of classical computing.

Quantum algorithms, such as Shor's algorithm for factoring and Grover's algorithm for search, have been developed but require fault-tolerant quantum computers to be practical.

Quantum error correction is a significant challenge, aiming to create nearly perfect computations from many imperfect quantum components.

Quantum computers are not expected to replace classical computers but to complement them by accelerating specific complex tasks.

Researchers are working on building abstraction layers for quantum computing, making it more accessible to programmers.

Quantum computers can be accessed via the cloud, allowing researchers and enthusiasts worldwide to experiment with them.

Quantum mechanics could enhance privacy through provably secure communication channels based on the laws of physics.

Quantum computing is expected to play a significant role in advancing machine learning and artificial intelligence.

The development of quantum computers involves interdisciplinary collaboration, including physicists, computer scientists, and engineers.

Quantum computing is still in its infancy, with many unknowns and potential applications yet to be discovered.

The field of quantum computing is characterized by a mix of theoretical work, experimental research, and practical applications.

Public misconceptions about quantum computing include the belief that it will quickly solve major global issues or break encryption systems imminently.

Transcripts

hi my name is talia gershon and i'm a

scientist at ibm research today i've

been challenged to explain a topic with

five levels of increasing complexity

it's a completely different kind of

computing called quantum computing

quantum computers approach solving

problems in a fundamentally new way and

we hope that by taking this new approach

to computation we'll be able to start

exploring some problems that we could

never solve any other way hopefully by

the end of today everyone can leave this

discussion understanding quantum

computing at some level

[Music]

what's this yeah what do you think that

is fancy chandelier i think so too we

jokingly call it the chandelier

that's real gold you know

this is a quantum computer

it's a clunt

it's a really special kind of computer

what does it do it calculates things but

in a totally different way to how your

computer calculates things

what do you think this is

a yeah do you know what your computer

thinks that is

zero one

this really specific combination of

zeros and ones everything that your

computer does showing you pink panther

videos on youtube

calculating things searching the

internet it does all of that with a

really specific combination of zeros and

ones which is crazy right that would be

like saying your computer only

understands these quarters for each

quarter you need to tell it that you're

going to use heads tails

and you assign it heads or tails so i

can switch between heads and tails and i

can switch the zeros and ones in my

computer so that it represents what i

wanted to represent like an a and with

quantum computers

we have new rules we get to use too

we can actually spin one of our quarters

so it doesn't have to choose just one or

the other can computers help you with um

your homework your really hard homework

yeah they can especially if doing your

homework involves calculating something

or finding information but what if your

homework was to discover something

totally new

a lot of those discovery questions are

much harder to solve using the computers

we have today so the reason we're

building these kinds of computers is

because we think that maybe one day

they're going to do a lot of really

important things like help us understand

nature better maybe help us create new

medicines to help people

what's your favorite kind of computer

smartphone tablet regular laptop pc i've

got to go with my iphone so what do you

do with your iphone social media

um

use it for your studying have you ever

run out of space on your iphone all the

time me too yeah always when i'm trying

to take a photo so did you know that

there's certain kinds of problems that

computers sort of run out of space

almost like you're trying to solve the

problem and just like how you run out of

space on your iphone when you're trying

to take a picture if you're trying to

solve the problem you just run out of

space

and even if you have the world's biggest

supercomputer did you know that can

still happen

wow so my team is working on building

new kinds of computers all together ones

that operate by totally different set of

rules so do you know what that is i have

no glue

it's a quantum computer

a what

you ever heard of a quantum computer i

haven't have you ever heard of the word

quantum no okay so quantum mechanics is

a branch of science just like any other

branch of science it's a branch of

physics it's the study of things that

are either really really small really

really well isolated and really really

cold and this particular branch of

science is something we're using to

totally reimagine how computing works so

we're building totally new kinds of

computers based on the laws of quantum

mechanics that's what a quantum computer

is huh i'm going to start by telling you

about something called superposition so

i'm going to explain it using this giant

penny

wow is that like worth 100 pennies i

don't know what it's worth but uh i can

put it face up right in that heads i can

put it face down right so at any given

time point in time if i ask you

is my penny heads or tails probably you

could answer it right yeah okay but what

if i spin the penny

hmm so let's do it

okay so while it's spinning is it heads

or tails

head

while it's spinning

oh it i would know

it's sort of it's sort of a combination

of heads and tails right would you say

so superposition is this idea that my

penny is not just either heads or tails

it's in this state which is a

combination of heads and tails this

quantum property is something that we

can have in real real physical objects

in the world so that's super position

and the second thing that we'll talk

about is called entanglement so now i'm

going to give you a penny

wow

when we use the word entangled in

everyday language

what do we mean that something's

intertwined or exactly that there's two

things that are connected in some way

and usually we can separate them again

yeah your hair is tangled or whatever

you can you can untangle it right yeah

but in the quantum world when we

entangle things they're really now

connected it's much much harder to

separate them again so using the same

analogy we spin our pennies and

eventually

eventually they both stop

right and when they stop it's either

heads or tails right so in my case i got

tails and you got heads you see how

they're totally disconnected from each

other right our pennies in the real

world now if our pennies were entangled

and we both spun them together

right

when we stopped them if you measured

your penny to be ahead i would measure

my penny to be ahead and if you measured

your penny to be a tails i would measure

my opinion to be a tails if we measured

it at exactly the same time we would

still find that they were both exactly

correlated that's crazy that's so cool

right oh my god the way that we are able

to actually see these quantum properties

is by making our quantum chips really

really cold so that's what this is all

about actually this is called a dilution

refrigerator and it's a refrigerator it

doesn't look like a normal refrigerator

right but it's something that we use

actually there's usually a case around

it to cool our quantum chips down cold

enough that we can create superpositions

and we can entangle qubits and the

information isn't lost to the

environment like what could those chips

be used to do so one of the things that

we're trying to use quantum computers to

do is simulating chemical bonding use a

quantum system to model a quantum system

yeah i mean i'm definitely going to

impress all my friends when i tell them

about this they're going to be like

quantum what

so what do you think that thing is

is it some sort of conjecture circuit

that is a really good guess there's

parts of that that are definitely about

conducting this is the inside of a

quantum computer

oh wow

yeah this whole infrastructure is all

about creating levels that get

progressively colder as you go from top

to bottom down to the quantum chip which

is how we actually control the state of

the cupids oh wow so when you say cold

or you mean like physically colder yeah

like physically colder so room

temperature is 300 kelvin as you get

down all the way to the bottom of the

fridge it's at 10 milli kelvin oh wow

yeah amanda what do you study so i'm

studying computer science currently a

sophomore and the track that i'm in is

the intelligent systems track machine

learning artificial intelligence you

ever heard of quantum computing from my

understanding with a quantum computer

rather than using transistors is using

spins you can have superposition of

spins so different states

more combinations means more memory so

that's pretty good so you mentioned

superposition but you can also use other

quantum properties like entanglement

have you heard of entanglement i have

not okay so it's this idea that you have

two objects and when you entangle them

together they become connected

and then they're sort of permanently

connected to each other and they behave

in ways that are sort of a system now so

superposition is one quantum property

that we use entanglement is another

quantum property and a third is

interference how much you know about

interference

um not much okay so how do

noise-canceling headphones work um they

read like wave like ambient wavelengths

and then produce like the opposite one

to cancel out they create interference

so you can have constructive

interference and you can have

destructive interference we have

constructive interference you have

amplitudes wave amplitudes that add

until the signal gets larger and if you

have destructive interference the

amplitudes cancel by using a property

like

interference we can control quantum

states and amplify the kinds of signals

that are towards the right answer and

then cancel the types of signals that

are leading to the wrong answer so given

that you know that we're trying to use

superposition entanglement and

interference for computation how do you

think we build these computers

i have no idea so step one is you need

to be able to have an object or physical

device we call it a qubit or quantum bit

that can actually handle those things

can actually be put into superpositions

of states you know two cubit states that

you can physically entangle with each

other that's not really trivial right

and things in our classical world you

can't really entangle things in our

classical world so easily we need to use

devices where they can they can support

a quantum state and we can manipulate

that quantum state atoms ions and in our

case superconducting qubits we make

qubits out of superconducting materials

but as like a programmer how would

quantum computing affect a different way

of writing a program it's a perfect

question i mean it's very early for

quantum computing but we're building

assembly languages we're building layers

of abstraction that are going to get you

to a point as a programmer where you can

interchangeably be programming something

the way that you already do

and then make calls to a quantum

computer so that you can bring it in

when it makes sense we're not

envisioning quantum computers completely

replacing classical computers anytime

soon we think that quantum computing is

going to be used to accelerate the kinds

of things that are really hard for for

classical machines so what exactly are

some of those problems

simulating nature is something that's

really hard because if you take

something like you know modeling atomic

bonding and electronic orbital overlap

instead of now writing out a giant

summation over many terms you try and

actually mimic the system you're trying

to simulate directly on a quantum

computer which we can do for chemistry

and uh we're looking at ways of doing

that for other types of things there's a

lot of exciting research right now on

machine learning trying to use quantum

systems to accelerate machine learning

problems so would it be like in five

years or ten years that i would be able

to have like one of these sitting in my

laptop just in my dorm i don't think

you're going to have one in your dorm

room anytime soon but you'll have access

to one there's three free quantum

computers that are all sitting in this

lab here that anyone in the world can

access through the cloud okay so quantum

computing creates new possibilities and

new ways to approach problems that

classical computers have difficulty

doing couldn't have said it better

myself

so i'm a first year master's student and

i'm studying machine learning so it's in

the computer science department but it

mixes computer science with math and

probability and statistics so have you

come upon sort of any limits to machine

learning certainly depending on the

complexity of your model uh then

computational speed is one thing i have

colleagues here that tell me it can take

up to weeks to train certain neural

networks right sure yeah and actually

machine learning is one research

direction where we're really hoping that

we're going to find um key parts of the

machine learning computation that can be

sped up using quantum computing yeah

it's exciting so in a classical computer

you know you have all sorts of logical

gates that perform operations and they

change an input to some sort of output

but

i guess it's not immediately obvious how

you do that with quantum computers if

you think about even just classical

information like bits right at the end

of the day when you store a bit in your

hard drive there's a

magnetic domain and you have a magnetic

polarization right sure you can change

the magnetization to be pointing up or

pointing down right quantum systems

we're still manipulating

a device and changing the quantum state

of that of that device you can imagine

if it's a spin that you could have spin

up and spin down but you can also

if you isolate it enough you can have a

superposition of up and down sure so

what we do when we try to solve problems

with a quantum computer is we encode

parts of the problem we're trying to

solve into a complex quantum state and

then we manipulate that state to drive

it towards what will eventually

represent the solution so how do we

actually uh encode it to start with yeah

that's a really good question this

actually is a model of the inside of one

of our quantum computers okay so you

need a chip with qubits each qubit is a

carrier of quantum information and the

way we control the state of that qubit

is using microwave pulses you send them

all the way down these cables and we've

calibrated these microwave pulses so

that we know exactly this kind of pulse

what this frequency and this duration

will put the cupid into superposition or

we'll flip the state of the qubit from

zero to one or if we apply a microwave

pulse between two qubits we can entangle

them how do we measure yes exactly also

through microwave signals okay the key

is to come up with algorithms where the

result is deterministic interesting so

what do those algorithms look like

there's sort of two main classes of

quantum algorithms there's algorithms

which were developed for decades right

things like shore's algorithm which is

for factoring grover's algorithm for

unstructured search and these algorithms

were designed assuming that you had a

perfect fault tolerant quantum computer

which is many decades away so we're

currently in a phase where we're

exploring what can we do with these

near-term quantum computers and the

answer is going to be well we need

different kinds of algorithms to really

even explore that question yeah

certainly having a search algorithm is

very useful um factoring those are

definitely useful things that i would

imagine could be done a lot faster on a

quantum computer yeah they also

unfortunately require fault tolerance

right now the algorithms that we know of

today to do those things um on a quantum

computer require you to have millions of

error-corrected qubits today we're at

like 50.

it's actually amazing that we're at 50.

there's things that we know or we have

strong reason to believe um are going to

be faster to do on a quantum computer

and then there's things that we'll

discover just by virtue of having one

sure how could someone like me who's a

grad student get involved in this or

what kinds of challenges are you facing

that someone like me could help out with

i'm glad you're interested

i think the place where lots of people

can get involved right now is by going

and trying it out and thinking about

what they could do with it there's a lot

of opportunity to find these near-term

applications that are only going to be

found by trying things out

i'm a theoretical physicist i started

out in condensed matter theory

theory that studies

superconductors and magnets and i had to

learn

a new field of quantum optics and apply

those ideas one of the nice things about

being a theorist is you get to keep

learning new things so steve tell me

about your research and the work you've

been doing in quantum computing my main

focus right now is quantum error

correction and trying to understand this

concept of fault tolerance which

everybody thinks they know it when they

see it but nobody in the quantum case

can precisely

define it it's something that we've

already figured out for classical

computing like something that amazes me

is all the parallels between what we're

going through now for quantum computing

and what we went through for classical

computing i was asking a computer

scientist recently where to read about

fault tolerance in classical computing

he said oh they don't teach that in

computer science classes anymore because

the hardware has become so reliable in a

quantum system when you look at it or

make measurements it it can change in a

way that's beyond your control we have

the following task build a nearly

perfect computer out of a whole bunch of

imperfect parts

common myth

how many qubits do you have that's the

only thing that matters like just add

more qubits what's the big deal pattern

them on your chip the great power of a

quantum computer is also its achilles

heel that it's very very sensitive to

perturbations and noise and

environmental effects you're just

multiplying your problems if all you're

doing is adding uh exactly so i think

something that frustrates a lot of

people about quantum computing is the

concept of decoherence right you can

only keep your information quantum for

so long right and that limits how many

operations you can do in a row before

you lose your information that's

the challenge i would say as much

progress as we've made it's a

frustration to still be facing it let's

talk about some of the things we think

need to happen between now and fully

fault tolerant quantum computers to get

us to that reality i mean there's so

many things that need to happen in my

mind one of the things we need to do is

build all these different layers of

abstraction that make it easier for

programmers to come in and just enter at

the ground level you know yeah exactly

so i think there's going to be a kind of

co-evolution

of the hardware

and the software up here and the sort of

middleware and the whole stack another

common myth in the next five years

quantum computing will solve climate

change cancer

[Laughter]

right in the next five years there'll be

tremendous progress in the field but

people really have to understand that

we're either at the vacuum tube or

transistor stage we're trying to invent

the integrated circuit and scale up it's

still very very very early in the

development of the field one last myth i

think we should bust steve quantum

computers are on the verge of breaking

into your bank account and breaking

encryption and creative cryptography

there does exist an algorithm shores

algorithm which

has been proven mathematically

that if you had a large enough quantum

computer

you could

find the prime factors of large numbers

the basis of the rsa encryption it's the

most commonly used thing

on the internet first we're far away

from

being able to have a quantum computer

big enough to execute schwarz algorithm

on that scale second

there are plenty of other encryption

schemes that don't use factoring and i

don't think anybody has to be concerned

at the moment and in the end quantum

mechanics goes to the side of privacy

enhancement if you have a quantum

communication channel you can

encode information and send it through

there and

it's

provably secure based on

the laws of physics you know now that

everybody around the world can access a

quantum computer through the cloud

people are doing all kinds of cool

things they're building games we've seen

the emergence of quantum gains right

what do you think people want to do with

them i have no idea what people are

going to

end up using them for i mean if you had

gone back

30 years and handed somebody an iphone

they would have called you a wizard so

things are going to happen that we just

can't foresee

so i hope you enjoyed that foray into

the field of quantum computing i know

i've personally enjoyed getting to see

quantum computing through other people's

eyes coming at it from all these

different levels this is such an

exciting time in the history of quantum

computing only in the last couple years

have real quantum computers become

available to everyone around the world

this is the beginning of a many decade

adventure where we'll discover so many

things about quantum computing and what

it will do we don't even know all the

amazing things it's going to do and to

me that's the most exciting part

[Music]

you