The field of quantum computing has generated a steady drumbeat of attention-grabbing headlines about the looming apocalypse, quantum supremacy, and endless new investments.
In an excoriating new essay forMIT Tech Review, prominent University of Maryland quantum researcher Sankar Das Sarma says that everyone needs to take a deep, deep breath.
He writes that the research is fascinating and that it may lead to extraordinary discoveries. According to his analysis, things are progressing slowly so far and we are unlikely to see anything change from the tech in the near future.
I am pro-quantum-computing and have published more than 100 technical papers on the subject, and many of my PhD students and postdoctoral fellows are now well-known quantum computing practitioners all over the world.
The history of quantum hype goes back to 1994, when an analysis showed that it was possible for the tech to crack the strongest existing encryption algorithms. Governments started pouring money into the space because of that threat.
Even though the tech appears to be physically possible, it has proven to be difficult to solve at scale. Today's top quantum computers have dozens of the types of qubits that are believed to be necessary to produce truly impressive results, according to the jump-out figure in his essay. We would need to scale that number to millions to effectively harness them.
The qubit systems we have today are a tremendous scientific achievement, but they take us no closer to having a quantum computer that can solve a problem that anyone cares about.
It's possible that quantum computing is still coming. Don't hold your breath according to this expert.
More on quantum computing.
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