NASA's quantum computing project hits pause button; reason is shocking (2024)

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NASA's quantum computing project hits pause button; reason is shocking? ›

The Shutdown and the Reasons Behind It

Planning for quantum computing risk

Quantum computers will be able to break common encryption methods at an alarming speed. Encryption tools currently used to protect everything from banking and retail transactions to business data, documents and digital signatures can be rendered ineffective – fast.

Cost and Accessibility. Currently, quantum computers are expensive and require very specialized environments to operate. Therefore, one of the big challenges for this technology is to make it accessible for widespread use.

Qubits (or anything from the quantum realm) are extremely small, so even the smallest perturbation or vibration can cause them to behave chaotically. Not to mention that in a large system with many qubits, such as a quantum computer, there are bound to be a few errors in the state of the qubits.

In 1994, American mathematician Peter Shor developed quantum algorithms to factor integers and solve the discrete logarithm problem. When run on a big enough quantum computer, these algorithms will be able to crack all the public key crypto systems we rely on today for privacy.

Elon Musk's proposed Quantum AI represents a significant leap forward in the realms of artificial intelligence (AI) and quantum computing. According to Smith and Johnson (2021), Musk envisions Quantum AI as a convergence of quantum computing's immense processing power with AI's problem-solving capabilities.

In short, quantum computers can threaten our data and privacy to the extent that this will force the largest technology upgrade cycle in computer history.

The delicate nature of quantum systems makes them extremely vulnerable to the slightest disturbance, whether that's a stray photon created by heat, a random signal from the surrounding electronics, or a physical vibration. This noise wreaks havoc, generating errors or even stopping a quantum computation in its tracks.

Classical computers are much faster than quantum computers, but sometimes quantum computers have dramatically better algorithms. So, in our analogy, classical computers would always be better in open water, where both have access to the best route (algorithm).

Complex problems that currently take the most powerful supercomputer several years could potentially be solved in seconds. Future quantum computers could open hitherto unfathomable frontiers in mathematics and science, helping to solve existential challenges like climate change and food security.

Why did NASA shut down the quantum computer? ›

The abrupt shutdown of NASA's quantum computing project was triggered by an unforeseen incident during a routine test. During the analysis of a complex simulation, the quantum computer demonstrated unprecedented computational power, solving a previously intractable problem.

1. International Business Machines Corporation (IBM) International Business Machines Corporation (IBM) is a notable name that has made significant breakthroughs in quantum computing over the years.

Astonishing capabilities of Google's quantum computer

Google's latest iteration of its quantum machine, the Sycamore quantum processor, currently holds 70 qubits.

Quantum computing also leaves organizations vulnerable to the “collect now, break later” mentality, France says, in which attackers could steal data that is encrypted now, wait five or so years for quantum computers to scale up and become more widely available, then use them to decrypt the data.

Quantum computers are still unable to crack cryptographic algorithms like those used in Bitcoin due to their small size or lack of fidelity. The field is progressing, though many technical obstacles, such as qubit coherence durations, error rates and others, have yet to be solved.

However, a classical computer can only be in one of these one billion states at the same time. A quantum computer can be in a quantum combination of all of those states, called superposition. This allows it to perform one billion or more copies of a computation at the same time.

Quantum computers are sensitive to noise and difficult to calibrate. Unlike traditional computers that would experience a bit flip from 0 to 1 or vice versa, quantum errors are more difficult to correct because qubits can take an infinite number of states.

Quantum computing promises to exponentially speed up the processing capabilities necessary for AI to analyze vast datasets and make complex decisions, from drug discovery to climate modeling.

Additionally, quantum computers require significant amounts of energy to operate, which could have environmental impacts, including greenhouse gas emissions and the depletion of non-renewable energy resources.

The current field of quantum computers isn't quite ready for prime time: McKinsey has estimated that 5,000 quantum computers will be operational by 2030 but that the hardware and software necessary for handling the most complex problems won't be available until 2035 or later.