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The future of quantum computing | The TechTank Podcast

February 12, 2024


  • Quantum computing holds the potential to tackle problems currently deemed impossible for classical computers. This includes critical issues in cryptography, drug discovery, finance, and data analysis.
  • The ongoing investments from governments and private entities indicate a collective commitment to advancing quantum computing technology, suggesting that we can anticipate more significant developments in the near future.
computer chip
Electronic computer hardware technology. Source: Shutterstock/archy13

Quantum computing promises to solve problems that are impossible for today’s computers, including key problems in cryptography, drug discovery, finance, and data analysis. By leveraging the quantum properties of individual atoms and elementary particles, these computers can store and manipulate information in a fundamentally different way from classical computers, opening the door to new algorithms and new solutions.

Although modern quantum computers are still small and error-prone, they have come a long way in the past decade, and continued investment, both from governments and the private sector, promises further breakthroughs. In the past year, there have been important developments, including a thousand-fold increase in the length of time that information persists, large improvements in algorithmic performance and error correction, and the first quantum computer with more than 1000 quantum bits. Once only a theoretical possibility, this emerging form of computing continues to move closer to being a practical reality.

In this week’s episode of the TechTank Podcast, co-host Darrell West delves into the future and capabilities of powerful quantum computers. To aid in comprehending these revolutionary machines, Darrell West is joined by Joseph Keller, a visiting fellow in the Foreign Policy program’s Strobe Talbott Center for Security, Strategy, and Technology at Brookings.

You can listen to this episode and subscribe to the TechTank Podcast on Apple, Spotify, or Acast.