Quantum Advantage Has Been Achieved – Here’s What That Means

According to The Next Web, quantum advantage – when a quantum computer is able to compute and run algorithms that classical computers can’t – has been achieved. This is the first time researchers have been able to accomplish this.

This “watershed moment in the history of computer science” resulted from the work done by researchers from IBM, the University of Waterloo, and the Technical University of Munich. According to The Next Web, the goal of the work was to “to prove that quantum computers can do something (anything, really) regular computers can’t,” and did this by building a quantum circuit that “ solves a complex algebraic formula through the exploitation of a quantum physics loophole allowing things to be in two places at once.” And, this formula can’t be solved by classic computer circuits.

What this means:

While this is a huge accomplishment for the future of computer science, The Next Web says that there isn’t anything tangible to show just yet. The algorithm that the researchers constructed isn’t groundbreaking in itself, nor will it have any immediate impact on anything. Instead, it is an important proof point: “It was, almost certainly, developed simply to prove it could be done,” according to The Next Web.

However, decision makers looking to jump on quantum computing shouldn’t lose heart so quickly – the impact of quantum advantage isn’t supposed to be tangible. Instead, The Next Web recommends that interested decision makers should strap in for the long haul when it comes to quantum advantage updates – they’re one step closer to seeing the effects of quantum computing become real. “By showing that the people claiming quantum advantage was a fantasy were wrong, and that the research is heading in the right direction, we’re closer than ever to realizing the potential of quantum computing,” The Next Web says.