Scientists 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 experiment used Google’s Willow Quantum processor and “quantum echoes,” a technique that uses directed waves to image an object in detail, he says. Google.
The technique targets a single qubit, the basic information storage unit in quantum computing, with a precise signal that triggers a reaction. The process is then reversed, allowing researchers to measure the “echo,” or the signal that bounces back, Google says.
The Google experiment is verifiable, which means the same results can be obtained by running the experiment on any quantum computer system with the same technical specifications as the one the researchers used.
A sufficiently powerful quantum computer could break the encryption algorithms that underlie cryptocurrencies and are also used to secure sensitive information in banking, medical and military applications. Encryption is a fundamental enabler of digital assets and peer-to-peer financing.
Related: What if quantum computers had already cracked Bitcoin?
Quantum computing and the existential threat to cryptocurrencies
According to experts, quantum computers can render elliptic curve digital signature algorithms (ECDSA), the cryptography used to generate public Bitcoin (BTC) addresses matched to a private key, which will be obsolete by 2030.
“This is the single biggest threat to Bitcoin since its rise from the ashes of the global financial crisis,” said David Carvalho, founder and chief scientist of the decentralized cybersecurity protocol Naoris.
Bitcoin and other decentralized protocols suffer from a collective action problem in which communities prefer to debate theoretical solutions rather than implement known workarounds as quickly as possible, Carvalho added.
According to Mental Outlaw, a pseudonymous technology YouTuber, quantum computers are not yet powerful enough to break encryption standards.
State-of-the-art encryption keys range from 2,048 to 4,096 bits in length, and current quantum computers are only capable of cracking keys of about 22 bits or less, Mental Outlaw he said.
But investors and companies are trying to get ahead of the problem by pushing for the adoption of post-quantum cryptography standards before a sufficiently competent quantum computer is available.
The United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) received approx submitted work in September, presenting a roadmap for quantum-resistant encryption standards by 2035.
Warehouse: Bitcoin vs. the Quantum Computer Threat: Timeline and Solutions (2025–2035)
