Strategy co-founder and executive chairman Michael Saylor dismissed concerns about quantum computing during an appearance on Natalie Brunell’s Coin Stories podcast, saying the cybersecurity community broadly agrees that any credible quantum threat will likely be more than a decade away.
While it’s unclear if or when quantum risk might materialize, Saylor said podcast host that any credible breakthrough would trigger coordinated software updates across global banking systems, internet infrastructure, consumer devices, artificial intelligence networks, and cryptographic protocols, including Bitcoin (BTC).
Saylor said the digital systems that underpin up-to-date digital infrastructure will eventually introduce post-quantum-resistant cryptography if needed, adding that such a change would not be a surprise.
“You’ll see it coming. We’ll all see it,” he said, adding that Bitcoin software is designed to change over time and nodes, hardware and wallets can be updated in response to emerging threats.
He said a global consensus on how to respond would only emerge if a credible threat emerged, noting that governments, technology companies and financial institutions would face the same risks to their digital systems.
He also described the crypto sector as “the most sophisticated cybersecurity community,” pointing to multi-factor authentication and dongle security commonly used to secure digital assets.
He said the procedures required to transfer Bitcoin are much more stringent than the security standards used for established bank transfers or stock trading systems. Saylor said:
“I think the crypto community will be the first to see and respond to the threat and lead the way.”
Quantum computing is an emerging field of computing that uses quantum mechanics to process information much faster than classical computers, raising concerns that advanced machines could eventually break the cryptography that secures Bitcoin and other digital assets.
Saylor’s strategy is to the biggest Bitcoin treasury company in the world. On Monday, the Tysons Corner, Virginia-based company announced that it had purchased 592 Bitcoins last week for approximately $39.8 million, marking its 100th acquisition since adopting its Bitcoin treasury strategy in August 2020.
It currently holds 717,722 BTC purchased for approximately $54.56 billion at an average price of $67,286 per coin.
Related: Willy Woo warns that quantum risks undermine Bitcoin’s advantage over gold
The ongoing quantum debate in cryptography
While Saylor, one of Bitcoin’s most prominent supporters, has downplayed the risks posed by quantum computing, others in the cryptocurrency industry seem more concerned about the threat.
One of them is Ethereum (ETH) co-founder Vitalik Buterin, who in behind schedule 2025 cited forecasting platform Metaculus that suggested a roughly 20% chance of quantum computers capable of breaking current cryptography emerging before 2030, with a median estimate of around 2040.
In a speech a few months later at Devconnect in Buenos Aires, he warned that the elliptic curve cryptography that underlies Ethereum and Bitcoin could fail before the 2028 U.S. presidential election, and pushed for a transition to quantum-resistant systems within the next four years.
The Ethereum Foundation has included post-quantum readiness in its 2026 security roadmap, and researcher Justin Drake announced on January 24 that a dedicated post-quantum team has been formed, describing the move as a turning point in the foundation’s long-term quantum strategy.
The quantum threat has even led some to speculate that it is behind the recent decline in Bitcoin’s price, which has fallen from a high of over $126,000 in October to its current level price approximately $64,000.
Castle Island Ventures partner Nic Carter in January he said Bitcoin’s “mysterious” underperformance could be attributed to quantum risk concerns, arguing that markets were reacting even when developers weren’t.
This view has met with opposition from Glassnode analyst James Check writing that quantum computing plans need to be implemented, but that the threat is not the “root cause” of the price decline.
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