{"id":99180,"date":"2025-10-24T19:15:09","date_gmt":"2025-10-24T19:15:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/99180\/"},"modified":"2025-10-24T19:15:09","modified_gmt":"2025-10-24T19:15:09","slug":"googles-quantum-computer-solved-a-real-algorithm-13000-times-faster-than-a-supercomputer","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/99180\/","title":{"rendered":"Google’s Quantum Computer Solved a Real Algorithm 13,000 Times Faster Than a Supercomputer"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\" <\/a>Google\u2019s Willow quantum computer (pictured here) is delivering. Image credits: Google.<\/p>\n

\u201cToday, we\u2019re announcing research that shows \u2014 for the first time in history \u2014 that a quantum computer can successfully run a verifiable algorithm on hardware,\u201d Google writes in a new blog post. The claim, backed by a paper published in Nature<\/a>, could be the first time a quantum computer proved practical efficiency.<\/p>\n

The quantum computation on 65 qubits would take a top supercomputer an estimated 3.2 years, while the quantum processor did it in 2.1 hours.<\/p>\n

Everything Is a Quantum Computer<\/p>\n

The universe, at a fundamental level, can be regarded<\/a> as a quantum computer. Every particle interaction, every chemical bond, every flicker of light is an information update in an immense calculation. Now, not every physicist would agree with this interpretation. However, some have looked at the universe in this way<\/a>. The practical problem is that simulating any real-life situation as a quantum process<\/a> is enormously difficult.<\/p>\n

In our day-to-day world, everything from protein folding<\/a> to a material\u2019s properties are so complex that the threads of quantum information become so hopelessly tangled that they are lost to us.<\/p>\n

This process, known as information scrambling, is closely related to a phenomenon called quantum ergodicity. It\u2019s like dropping a speck of red dye into a blender: in an instant, the information about its shape and position is dispersed into a uniform pink blur. Ordinary measurements can only glimpse that final, mixed state, leaving the underlying quantum processes hidden from view.<\/p>\n

But what if you could run the blender in reverse? What if you could command the chaotic swirl of \u201cpink\u201d to un-mix itself, revealing the pristine red drop once more?<\/p>\n

This is one of the key reasons why researchers are so excited about quantum computers<\/a>. It\u2019s not that you\u2019ll be able to compute more necessarily, but that you\u2019ll be able to conduct entirely different types of calculations, possibly even directly simulating reality itself<\/a>.<\/p>\n

This is also the essence of a landmark experiment from Google Quantum AI and its collaborators, published in the journal Nature. Using a sophisticated superconducting quantum processor, the team implemented a \u201cquantum echo\u201d protocol that enables them to unscramble ergodicity. This \u201cout-of-time-order\u201d sequence allowed them to probe and measure deep, hidden correlations in a highly entangled system \u2014 correlations that are completely invisible to all other methods.<\/p>\n

\u201cImagine you\u2019re trying to find a lost ship at the bottom of the ocean,\u201d Google writes. \u201cSonar technology might give you a blurry shape and tell you, \u201cThere\u2019s a shipwreck down there.\u201d But what if you could not only find the ship but also read the nameplate on its hull?<\/p>\n

That\u2019s the kind of unprecedented precision we\u2019ve just achieved with our Willow quantum chip. Today, we\u2019re announcing a major algorithmic breakthrough that marks a significant step towards a first real-world application.\u201d<\/p>\n

So\u2026 Are Quantum Computers Coming?<\/p>\n

\"\" <\/a>The Willow quantum computer. Image credits: Google.<\/p>\n

Quantum Computers<\/a> seem to be one of those inventions that are always 5-10 years away. But while practical quantum computers do seem a few years away, it would be deeply unfair to dismiss the progress recently made.<\/p>\n

In a basic sense, quantum computers are already here. Google isn\u2019t the only company to have access to running, functional quantum computers. We\u2019re still over a decade away from being able to buy one at the store, but for research, quantum computers are very much here. The problem is scale.<\/p>\n

Google\u2019s algorithm was run on 65 qubits, with one qubit being the quantum equivalent of a bit. To scale that up is enormously difficult. Qubits rely on the delicate quantum properties<\/a> of superposition and entanglement. Every temperature shift, any unexpected interference, can cause major computation errors.<\/p>\n

The entire field is now focused on building a \u201cfault-tolerant<\/a>\u201d quantum computer. This is a machine that can actively correct its own errors faster than they occur. The key breakthrough required for this is the logical qubit.<\/p>\n

A logical qubit is not a physical object, but rather a robust \u201cvirtual\u201d qubit encoded across many (perhaps thousands of) physical qubits. These physical qubits work as a team, constantly checking each other for errors and correcting them without disturbing the overall quantum information<\/a>. Google\u2019s experiment is impressive, and it shows the potential of existing systems. Still, it doesn\u2019t bring us closer to fault-tolerant computers.<\/p>\n

Several experts quizzed by The Guardian said that<\/a> while impressive, Google\u2019s achievement doesn\u2019t mean quantum computers are practical yet, and that\u2019s still a few years away. <\/p>\n

We will likely see more and more \u201cpractical advantage\u201d experiments like this one. Noisy quantum processors will be used as scientific accelerators, co-processors, or \u201cquantum sensors\u201d to solve specific, high-value problems in drug discovery, materials science, and physics simulation that are impossible for classical machines. A Google VP recently estimated this kind of \u201creal-world use\u201d might be just five years away.<\/p>\n

The era of quantum computing is not quite upon us, but it\u2019s getting closer and closer.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Google\u2019s Willow quantum computer (pictured here) is delivering. Image credits: Google. \u201cToday, we\u2019re announcing research that shows \u2014…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":99181,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[24],"tags":[12554,39859,111,139,69,393,5791,72759,147],"class_list":{"0":"post-99180","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-physics","8":"tag-algorithm","9":"tag-computation","10":"tag-new-zealand","11":"tag-newzealand","12":"tag-nz","13":"tag-physics","14":"tag-quantum-computer","15":"tag-qubit","16":"tag-science"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/99180","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=99180"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/99180\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/99181"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=99180"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=99180"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=99180"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}