Researchers at tech giant Google say they have mapped the structure of a molecule 13,000 times faster than the most powerful “supercomputers” available today, achieving the first verifiable quantum advantage.
The experience used Google’s Willow Quantum processor and “quantum echoes,” a technique that uses targeted waves to image an object in detail, according to Google.
The technique targets a single qubit, the basic unit of information storage in quantum computing, with a precise signal, causing it to react. The process is then reversed, allowing researchers to measure the “echo” or signal that bounces back, Google said.
Google’s experiment is verifiable, meaning the same results can be obtained by running the experiment on any computer. quantum computing system with the same technical specifications as that used by the researchers.
A sufficiently powerful quantum computer could crack encryption algorithms which underpin cryptocurrencies and are also used to secure sensitive information in banking, medical and military applications. Encryption is the main component which makes digital assets and peer-to-peer financing possible.
Related: What if quantum computers already broke Bitcoin?
Quantum Computing and the Existential Threat to Cryptography
Quantum computers could render elliptic curve digital signature algorithms (ECDSA), the cryptography used to generate public Bitcoin (BTC) addresses corresponding to a private key, obsolete by 2030according to experts.
“This is the biggest threat to Bitcoin since its creation from the ashes of the global financial crisis,” said David Carvalho, founder and chief scientist of decentralized cybersecurity protocol Naoris.
Bitcoin and other decentralized protocols suffer from a collective action problem, where communities choose to debate theoretical solutions, rather than implementing known workarounds as soon as possible, Carvalho added.
Quantum computers are not yet powerful enough to break encryption standardsaccording to Mental Outlaw, a pseudonymous YouTuber who covers technology.
Modern encryption key lengths range from 2,048 to 4,096 bits, with current quantum computers only able to decrypt keys of around 22 bits or less, Mental Outlaw said.
However, investors and companies are seeking to get ahead of the problem by encouraging the adoption of post-quantum cryptography standards before the emergence of a sufficiently powerful quantum computer.
The United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has received submission in September, outlining a roadmap for quantum-resistant encryption standards by 2035.
Review: Bitcoin against the quantum computing threat: timeline and solutions (2025-2035)
