{"id":287494,"date":"2026-02-12T12:13:17","date_gmt":"2026-02-12T12:13:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/287494\/"},"modified":"2026-02-12T12:13:17","modified_gmt":"2026-02-12T12:13:17","slug":"five-ways-quantum-technology-could-shape-everyday-life-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/287494\/","title":{"rendered":"Five Ways Quantum Technology Could Shape Everyday\u00a0Life"},"content":{"rendered":"

From The Conversation<\/a><\/p>\n

By Salil Gunashekar, Senior Research Leader and Deputy Director, Science and Emerging Technology; Adam Urwick, Analyst, Science and Emerging Technology and Teodora Chis, Senior Analyst, Science and Emerging Technology, all of RAND Europe<\/p>\n

The unveiling by IBM of two new\u00a0quantum supercomputers<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0Denmark\u2019s plans<\/a>\u00a0to develop \u201cthe world\u2019s most powerful commercial quantum computer\u201d mark just two of the latest developments in quantum technology\u2019s increasingly rapid transition from experimental breakthroughs to practical applications.<\/p>\n

There is growing promise of quantum technology\u2019s ability to solve problems that today\u2019s systems struggle to overcome, or cannot even begin to tackle, with implications for industry, national security and everyday life.<\/p>\n

\"Responsive<\/a><\/p>\n

So, what exactly is\u00a0quantum technology<\/a>? At its core, it harnesses the counter-intuitive laws of quantum mechanics, the branch of physics describing how matter and energy behave at the smallest scales. In this strange realm, particles can exist in several states simultaneously (superposition) and can remain connected across vast distances (entanglement).<\/p>\n

Once the stuff of abstract theory, these effects are now being engineered into innovative, cutting-edge systems: computers that process information in entirely new ways, sensors that measure the world with unprecedented precision, and communication networks that are virtually impossible to compromise.<\/p>\n

To understand how this emerging field could shape the future, here are five areas where quantum technology may soon have a tangible impact.<\/p>\n

1. Discovery for medicine and materials science<\/p>\n

A pharmaceutical scientist seeks to design a new medicine for a previously incurable disease. There are thousands of possible molecules, many ways they might interact inside the body and uncertainty about which will work.<\/p>\n

In another lab, materials researchers explore thousands of different atomic combinations and ratios to develop better batteries, chemicals and alloys to reduce transport emissions.T raditional supercomputers can narrow the options but eventually meet their limits.<\/p>\n

This is where quantum computing could make a decisive difference. They use quantum bits, or qubits \u2013 the most basic unit of information in a quantum computer. Qubits do not simply consist of 1s and zeroes, like bits in conventional computers, but can exist in a variety of different quantum \u201cstates\u201d.<\/p>\n

Indeed, the ability to develop and control qubits is central to advancing quantum computing and other quantum technologies. By using qubits, quantum computers can\u00a0simulate vast numbers<\/a>\u00a0and different possibilities simultaneously, revealing patterns that classical systems cannot reach within useful time-frames.<\/p>\n

In\u00a0healthcare<\/a>, faster\u00a0drug discovery<\/a>\u00a0could bring quicker response to outbreaks and epidemics, personalised medicine and insight into previously inscrutable biological interactions.\u00a0Quantum simulation of how materials<\/a>\u00a0behave could lead to new high efficiency energy materials, catalysts, alloys and polymers.<\/p>\n

Although fully operational, commercial quantum computers are still in development, progress is accelerating, with existing paradigms combining quantum and classic computational approaches already\u00a0demonstrating the potential<\/a>\u00a0to reshape how we discover and design cures.<\/p>\n

2. Sensors for navigation, medicine and the environment<\/p>\n

A new range of sensors can exploit different quantum phenomena such as\u00a0superposition<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0entanglement<\/a>\u00a0to detect changes that conventional instruments would miss, with potential uses across many areas of daily life.<\/p>\n

In\u00a0navigation<\/a>, they could guide ships, submarines and aircrafts without GPS by reading subtle variations in the Earth\u2019s magnetic and gravitational fields.<\/p>\n

In\u00a0medicine<\/a>, quantum sensors could improve diagnostic capabilities via more sensitive, quicker and noninvasive imaging modes.<\/p>\n

In environmental monitoring, these sensors could track delicate shifts beneath the Earth\u2019s surface, offer\u00a0early warnings<\/a>\u00a0of seismic activity, or\u00a0detect trace pollutants<\/a>\u00a0in air and water with exceptional accuracy.<\/p>\n

3. Optimisation for logistics and finance<\/p>\n

Many of the hardest challenges today concern the optimisation of staggeringly complex systems; the task of choosing the best option among billions of possibilities.<\/p>\n

Managing a\u00a0power grid<\/a>\u00a0or investment portfolio,\u00a0scheduling flights<\/a>\u00a0or financial trading, or\u00a0coordinating global deliveries<\/a>\u00a0all feature optimisation problems so complex that even advanced supercomputers struggle to find efficient answers in time.<\/p>\n

Quantum computing could change this. Quantum algorithms could be used to solve optimisation problems that are intractable using classical approaches.<\/p>\n

By using quantum principles to explore many solutions simultaneously, these systems could identify solutions far faster than traditional methods. A logistics company could adjust delivery routes in real time as traffic, weather and demand shift.<\/p>\n

Airlines and rail networks could automatically reconfigure to avoid cascading delays, while energy providers might balance renewable generation, storage and consumption with far greater precision. Banks could use quantum computers to evaluate\u00a0numerous market scenarios<\/a>\u00a0in parallel, informing the management of investment portfolios.<\/p>\n

4. Ultra-secure communication<\/p>\n

Security is one of the areas where quantum technology could have the most immediate impact. Quantum computers are inching\u00a0ever closer<\/a>\u00a0to being capable of breaking many of today\u2019s encryption systems (such as RSA encryption which secures data transmission on the internet), posing a major cybersecurity challenge.<\/p>\n

At the same time, quantum communication techniques, such as quantum key distribution (QKD), could offer intrinsically\u00a0secure encrypted communication<\/a>.<\/p>\n

In practical terms, this could secure everything from\u00a0financial transactions<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0health records<\/a>\u00a0to\u00a0government<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0military communications<\/a>. For national security agencies, quantum-safe encryption is already a strategic priority. For the average person, it could mean stronger digital privacy, more reliable identity systems and reduced risk of cyberattacks.<\/p>\n

5. Supercharging progress in AI<\/p>\n

Artificial intelligence is already reshaping industries, but is reliant on the immense computing power needed to train and run large models. In the future, quantum computing could\u00a0boost AI <\/a>\u00a0by handling calculations that classical machines find too complex.<\/p>\n

While still at an early stage of development,\u00a0quantum algorithms<\/a>\u00a0might accelerate a subset of AI called machine learning (where algorithms improve with experience), help simulate complex systems, or optimise AI architectures more efficiently. That could lead to AI systems that learn faster, understand context better, and process far larger datasets than today\u2019s models allow.<\/p>\n

Think of AI assistants that understand you more naturally, medical diagnostic tools that integrate genomic and environmental data in real time, or scientific research that advances through rapid, quantum-boosted simulations.<\/p>\n

Why this matters\u2026 and what to watch<\/p>\n

Quantum technology is no longer just a theoretical pursuit. Optimism is increasing that commercially viable and scalable quantum technologies may become a reality over the next ten years. With billions in global investment and a growing number of prototypes being tested outside the lab, the \u201cquantum era\u201d is starting to take shape.<\/p>\n

Governments see it as a\u00a0strategic priority<\/a>, and industries see it as a competitive edge. Its ripple effects could touch nearly every sector from healthcare, energy, and finance, to defence and beyond.<\/p>\n

That means we\u00a0should be asking<\/a>\u00a0whether our education systems, workforce dynamics, infrastructure and governance mechanisms are effective \u2013 and whether they are keeping pace.<\/p>\n

Those who invest early and strategically in quantum readiness and who have the patience to sustain this effort will shape how this technology unfolds. When it does arrive, even if we might be a few years away, its impact could reach far beyond the lab into every part of our connected, data-driven world.<\/p>\n

Photo by Logan Voss<\/a> on Unsplash<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"From The Conversation By Salil Gunashekar, Senior Research Leader and Deputy Director, Science and Emerging Technology; Adam Urwick,…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":287495,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[24],"tags":[85,46,370,2998,146836,141,13618],"class_list":{"0":"post-287494","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-physics","8":"tag-il","9":"tag-israel","10":"tag-physics","11":"tag-quantum-technology","12":"tag-rand-europe","13":"tag-science","14":"tag-the-conversation"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/287494","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=287494"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/287494\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/287495"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=287494"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=287494"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=287494"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}