{"id":217143,"date":"2025-10-16T11:16:09","date_gmt":"2025-10-16T11:16:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/217143\/"},"modified":"2025-10-16T11:16:09","modified_gmt":"2025-10-16T11:16:09","slug":"the-promise-of-cat-qubits","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/217143\/","title":{"rendered":"The Promise of Cat Qubits"},"content":{"rendered":"

Managing Editor\u2019s Note: Continuing with Quantum Week here at Brownstone Research, today, Jeff dives into the sensitivity of quantum bits \u2013 or qubits \u2013 and a company with a unique approach to quantum computing that has just seen a breakthrough\u2026<\/p>\n

Before we get to that, make sure you sign up here with one click<\/a> to join Jeff next Tuesday, October 21, at 8 p.m. ET, at his Quantum Flashpoint strategy session.<\/p>\n

The breakthrough Jeff writes about today happened just days ago\u2026 and as you\u2019ll hear today, we\u2019re on the fast track towards fault-tolerant quantum computing systems. The industry is racing \u2013 pouring time, effort, and resources \u2013 to achieve this.<\/p>\n

Now\u2019s the time to make sure you\u2019re poised to seize the opportunity. You can go here to automatically sign up to attend next week<\/a> to learn more about where quantum computing is headed\u2026 and Jeff\u2019s three favorite companies to play it.<\/p>\n

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Noise is the bane of quantum computing.<\/p>\n

As we explored in yesterday\u2019s Bleeding Edge \u2013 Scaling Quantum Computing<\/a>, any kind of environmental variance \u2013 like vibrations, electromagnetic interference, or temperature changes \u2013 can cause decoherence, which is the process of a quantum system losing its quantum state.<\/p>\n

This is because noise leads to two kinds of primary errors in a quantum bit (qubit) \u2013 either a bit-flip error or a phase-flip error.<\/p>\n

Both kinds of errors result in a qubit losing its superposition, which results in the loss of the quantum information encoded in the qubit.<\/p>\n

Limiting quantum errors and correcting quantum errors are the bottlenecks of quantum computing.<\/p>\n

Two Errors<\/p>\n

As a reminder, the ability for a qubit to maintain a superposition at some point between 0 and 1 is what gives quantum computers their superpowers.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s what enabled Google\u2019s Willow to solve a complex problem in under five minutes \u2013 the same problem that would take a classical supercomputer 10 septillion years to complete.<\/p>\n

To state the obvious, that\u2019s not a reasonable amount of time.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

A Qubit\u2019s Superposition | Source: Alice & Bob<\/p>\n

Superposition, shown above, can be represented by the tip of the black arrow.<\/p>\n

A qubit can be in a superposition between an infinite number of spots on the sphere between 0 and 1. This compares to a classical computing bit that can only be a 0 or a 1. A qubit can be in a simultaneous state of both 0 and 1 at the same time with superposition.<\/p>\n

If a quantum bit can\u2019t maintain its superposition, the information encoded in that quantum bit is lost.<\/p>\n

One type of error is referred to as a phase-flip error. This is when the qubit is switching between phases, switching from \u201c+\u201d to \u201c-\u201d as shown below.<\/p>\n

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A Phase-flip Error | Source: Alice & Bob<\/p>\n

The second kind of error is known as a bit-flip error, which is when the state of the qubit changes randomly from 0 to 1, or the other way around.<\/p>\n

The effect of a bit-flip error is the same as a phase-flip error: The qubit loses its superposition and thus the information that it contained.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

A Bit-flip Error | Source: Alice & Bob<\/p>\n

This leads us to a very interesting development announced just days ago.<\/p>\n

The Promise of Cat Qubits<\/p>\n

The recent announcement came from a very interesting quantum computing company that I\u2019ve been tracking for years, Alice & Bob<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Alice & Bob is a rarity in the world of quantum computing, based in Paris, not the U.S. And it has been pursuing a unique approach to quantum computing that is now showing some strong advantages.<\/p>\n

The name might seem odd, but it is actually a nod back to the origins of encryption technology.<\/p>\n

They were \u201cnamed\u201d in a 1978 research paper, which led to the RSA algorithms that underpin most encrypted public communications today.<\/p>\n

The names Alice and Bob were used to describe scenarios in which Alice sends an encrypted message to Bob, and Bob needs Alice\u2019s key to decrypt Alice\u2019s message, etc.<\/p>\n

Today\u2019s Alice & Bob has built an unconventional superconducting supercomputer that uses cat qubits \u2013 a reference to Schr\u00f6dinger\u2019s cat states, which supposes that a cat can be in two different states at exactly the same time (in this case, alive and dead at the same time \u2013 a visual, albeit gruesome, way to explain superposition).<\/p>\n

Using superconducting circuits, cat qubits can achieve a quantum superposition just like \u201cnormal\u201d qubits in the superconducting systems of Google (GOOGL) or Rigetti Computing (RGTI)\u2026<\/p>\n

However, there is one major advantage of using cat qubits\u2026 <\/p>\n

They naturally suppress bit-flip errors.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s like having built-in error correction in the superconducting architecture.<\/p>\n

Just a few days ago, Alice & Bob released some research on a breakthrough in quantum computing.<\/p>\n

The company was able to demonstrate that their cat qubits could maintain their state and resist a bit-flip error for more than an hour.<\/p>\n

That might not seem like much, but typical quantum computing systems experience bit-flip errors and decoherence in periods measured in milliseconds.<\/p>\n

Alice & Bob\u2019s cat qubits lasted millions of times longer. Remarkable.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Alice & Bob\u2019s Line Up of Superconducting Quantum Chips | Source: Alice & Bob<\/p>\n

There are two key insights for us to glean from this latest development.<\/p>\n

The Road to a Fault-Tolerant Quantum Computer<\/p>\n

The first insight from Alice & Bob\u2019s breakthrough is that even when quantum computers can only \u201crun\u201d (i.e., maintain coherence) for a period measured in milliseconds, they can still perform incredible computational feats because they are so powerful.<\/p>\n

Obviously, the scale of the computational capability of a quantum computer depends on its ability to maintain coherence, its quantum error correction technology, and the number of physical and logical qubits in the quantum system.<\/p>\n

Envisioning quantum computers that can run for hours on end is nothing short of mind-blowing.<\/p>\n

When we can couple fault-tolerant quantum computers with artificial intelligence software, we will enter a world where major breakthroughs are happening daily. The thought of that might make our heads spin.<\/p>\n

And here\u2019s the best part\u2026 this is beginning to happen now. It will be a couple more years still before we see more powerful, fault-tolerant systems, but AI is being used with quantum computers today.<\/p>\n

The second insight from Alice & Bob\u2019s announcement is that it suggests a superconducting architecture that could be dramatically more efficient when it comes to large-scale quantum computers.<\/p>\n

More specifically, the results demonstrated by Alice & Bob could enable a universal fault-tolerant quantum computer that requires only a fraction of the number of physical qubits compared to Google\u2019s approach to quantum computing for the same performance.<\/p>\n

And I\u2019m not suggesting a 10-20% reduction in physical qubits, it\u2019s more like an order of magnitude less.<\/p>\n

This could potentially result in far more efficient, less costly, and more stable universal fault-tolerant quantum computers \u2013 the holy grail of quantum computing.<\/p>\n

For that reason, we\u2019ll be keeping a close eye on Alice & Bob over the next few years.<\/p>\n

The company is slated to release its Helium superconducting quantum chip in 2026, which incorporates phase-flip error correction.<\/p>\n

And the company\u2019s target is to achieve a fault-tolerant system by 2030.<\/p>\n

What\u2019s happening today in quantum computing is not dissimilar to what\u2019s happening in nuclear fusion.<\/p>\n

A wide range of public and private companies are in a grand race to experiment, iterate, and innovate with a wide range of approaches to achieve a world-changing end-goal.<\/p>\n

And what\u2019s incredible about this point in time that we are living in\u2026 is that we now have the semiconductor technology, the materials science, the artificial intelligence, the cryogenic technology, and an endless amount of private capital\u2026 every, and I mean every, good idea is getting funded right now.<\/p>\n

This convergence of resources is racing to try every permutation to determine which design will be the most efficient in achieving the end goal.<\/p>\n

What comes next will be breathtaking.<\/p>\n

Jeff<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\tWant more stories like this one?<\/p>\n

The Bleeding Edge is the only free newsletter that delivers daily insights and information from the high-tech world as well as topics and trends relevant to investments.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Managing Editor\u2019s Note: Continuing with Quantum Week here at Brownstone Research, today, Jeff dives into the sensitivity of…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":217144,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[24],"tags":[49,48,314,66],"class_list":{"0":"post-217143","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-physics","8":"tag-ca","9":"tag-canada","10":"tag-physics","11":"tag-science"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/217143","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=217143"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/217143\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/217144"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=217143"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=217143"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=217143"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}