Exponential jumps in computing power using QBits

The massive amount of processing power generated by computer manufacturers has not yet been able to quench our thirst for speed and computing capacity. With the advent of large data & AI processing requirements increasing, both in research and business world, the current capacity would hit a roadblock for most of the high end computer(s) even in tandem.

Imagine a scenario where you could do the most complex algorithms and computing on your own computer (yes not on the server). That is what Quantum Computing would enable .

Fiona MacDonald explained earlier this month:

"Right now, regular computer chips store information as binary bits, which are either in a 0 or 1 state. This system works well, but it means that there's a finite amount of data that can be processed. Qubits, on the other hand, can be in the state of 0, 1, or both at the same time, which gives quantum computers unprecedented processing power... if we can work out how to build them."

A particle that can take on the role of both 0 and 1 allows for something known as quantum speed-up.

What does that mean to YOU? It gives you the extreme computing potential within the same environment. So, if current computer working on Bit can be either 0 or 1 ie 2^2 option, QBits can be 0,1 or both ie 2^3. Simple maths would show that a simple computer of 8 bit would give you 256 multiplier time more power to compute. Wow, isn't it!

Advantages and disadvantages

Main advantage of Quantum computers is that they are extremely fast and are inherently massively parallel with enormous processing power but are still small in size.

These would make the current cryptographic algorithms and mechanisms redundant with a need for new mechanisms to be devised which are more complex.

Ah! So you think since the Qbits chips are faster, things would be better! Well, think again! Quantum computers and their algorithm with extreme capacity would not lead but they would replace current/traditional computers. High capacity and computing power also has its own fair share of complexities. 

Some of the challenges that still need to be resolved are that

 - they generate lot of heat

 - still difficult to predict how to control them

 - what will the best usage for traditional and quantum computers.

Complex algorithms with huge data and insights would tilt toward Quantum Physics while "keep it simple" would be THE mantra for traditional computers.

History of quantum computing

It is not new and lot of work has been happening in this space for over the last 50 years. As per Wikipedia, the concept of conjugate coding was invented by Stephen Wiesner in 1960. Over the last few years biggies like IBM, D-Wave, Google among others have come out with their own versions and hardware to support Qbits. IBM and D-Wave have also launched commercially available computers based on Qbits.

Conclusion

The quantum computing future looks promising and first few steps have already been taken on this path. Challenges would be overcome and the ecosystem with software to utilize the phenomenal power would/are being developed. The main usage of these computers would come from the research sector and it would be some time till commercial sector imbibes the benefits from them as commercial, security, software, predictable results etc, still needs to be established.