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Google explains claim of achieving 'quantum supremacy' milestone

By Nicholas Sakelaris
Google said the milestone shows what is possible for future generations of computers. File Photo by John Angelillo/UPI
Google said the milestone shows what is possible for future generations of computers. File Photo by John Angelillo/UPI | License Photo

Oct. 23 (UPI) -- Technology giant Google has expanded on its claim of achieving quantum supremacy -- the ability to solve complex technical problems that contemporary computers cannot -- by publishing its research on the achievement Wednesday.

The Mountain View, Calif.-based conglomerate first announced last month it had achieved the milestone. Wednesday, the journal Nature published Google's full report on the concept.

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Quantum supremacy involves superior technical computing capabilities absent in modern computers. Google said it has built a machine, called Sycamore, that's so advanced that it can perform a certain calculation in just 200 seconds -- a problem it estimates would take even the most sophisticated traditional supercomputer 10,000 years to crack.

Google says the 53-bit quantum Sycamore can pave the way for an untold number of new technologies. A basic unit of quantum information is called a qubit.

"We are able to achieve these enormous speeds only because of the quality of control we have over the qubits," Google CEO Sundar Pichai said in a statement Wednesday. "For those of us working in science and technology, it's the 'hello world' moment we've been waiting for -- the most meaningful milestone to date in the quest to make quantum computing a reality."

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Google said it has been working for more than a decade to achieve quantum supremacy.

The Nature report, titled "Quantum supremacy using a programmable superconducting processor," outlines the methods and research that went into Google's claim -- and notes how a high-fidelity processor is built, comparisons with classical computers and its impact on future technical generations.

"Our experiment achieves quantum supremacy, a milestone on the path to full-scale quantum computing," Google says in its report.

For now, solving a complex math problem has no practical application. The test just demonstrates future computing potential.

"The first plane flew only for 12 seconds, and so there is no practical application of that," Pichai said. "But it showed the possibility that a plane could fly."

The Google CEO also likened the achievement to the first rocket that left Earth-bound gravity and reached the edge of space -- a milestone that ultimately inspired scientists to plan trips to the moon.

Some competitors in the industry have disputed Google's claim of achieving quantum supremacy.

Dario Gil, head of research at IBM, called the claim "just plain wrong" -- adding that Google's Sycamore doesn't pass muster as a general-purpose quantum computer because it was designed to solve just one problem.

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