As the race to quantum supremacy charges on, Google has reached a new milestone that is redefining quantum computing as we know it. Google’s Willow quantum chip is the most powerful quantum processor to date, boasting unprecedented computing capabilities with the alarming potential to disrupt industries and the cryptographic protocols that make up the foundation of today’s internet.

What is Google’s Willow Quantum Chip?

Google's Willow quantum chip is a cutting-edge processing chip achieving a record-breaking 105-qubits. The largest limiting factor to the development of quantum computers is their error rates, as quantum computers are susceptible to a range of disturbances, including temperature, electromagnetic radiation & vibrations. Unlike previous quantum chips, Willow’s architecture minimizes error rates allowing for a much higher degree of quantum stability. Google published results in their Nature journal showing that the more qubits used in willow, the more they actually reduced errors and the more quantum the system becomes. Typically, quantum error rates increase as quantum systems begin to scale their number of qubits. However, with Willow, as they increased their logical qubits, the error rates remained stable. Their advancement pushes the boundary on what quantum computers can solve, and, in record time, are displaying a convincing prototype for larger more powerful quantum computers in the future.

What Does This Mean for Computing Power?

In this Google article announcing Willow, Google claimed their system has the capability to solve a vexing mathematical problem that has stumped scientists for decades called random circuit sampling. Google announced that their groundbreaking Willow chip solved a standard computation in under five minutes that would take the Frontier supercomputer over 10 septillion years to complete, an incomprehensible number that extends much further than the age of our universe. Hartmut Neven, the founder of Google Quantum AI, stated that this achievement is a significant step forward in building practical quantum computing in the future. “This is the most convincing prototype for a scalable logical qubit built to date,” he said, while “Willow brings us closer to running practical, commercially relevant algorithms that can’t be replicated on conventional computers.” However, many experts advance caution, noting that while Willow shows significant error correction progress, the chip still remains experimental and doesn’t demonstrate immediate use in any practices for widespread use at this time.

Will Willow Break Cryptography?

Undoubtedly, the risk to traditional encryption has now grown significantly with the release of Google's breakthrough in quantum error correction and processing speed. Conventional algorithms like RSA and ECC that have long relied on the computational improbability of factoring large numbers to solve discrete logarithms are inching towards a dangerous level of vulnerability. Google Quantum AI Director and COO Charina Chou told The Verge “The Willow chip is not capable of breaking modern cryptography.” However, these recent improvements in quantum computing developments bring increased worry onto how long we have left until quantum computers will be able to break current encryption. With the recent advancements in quantum computing put on display by Google, there is an equal and considerably more important challenge: the need for widespread quantum-resistant cryptographic & key distribution solutions. The timeline for quantum threats to have real world implications in breaking encryption is accelerating at an unprecedented speed. Enterprises and governments cannot afford to wait any longer when it comes to implementing post-quantum cryptography & quantum-resistant key distribution protocols to secure data today for the threats of tomorrow.

How Zeroproof Can Protect Against the Quantum Threat.

Traditional key exchange mechanisms like Diffie-Hellman, RSA & ECC are becoming increasingly more vulnerable to advancements in both conventional computing and quantum computing. While NIST’S ongoing standardization of post-quantum cryptography has identified algorithms that may have widespread use in securing against the quantum threat, they don’t inherently solve the problems of secure key exchange. Alternative solutions are being presented like Quantum Key Distribution (QKD), which uses quantum particles, like photons, to encode keys in their quantum states and transmit them over fiber optic lines. However, experts from many organizations, including NIST, agree that there are significant limitations that hinder its broad adoption for scalability, including intensive infrastructure requirements, distance limitations, side-channel attack vulnerabilities, specialized hardware and significantly high implementation costs. This is where Zeroproof comes in. Zeroproof Emulated Quantum Key Distribution (eQKD) is a quantum-resistant symmetric key distribution protocol that ensures seamless integration with emerging encryption standards. Our eQKD solution emulates the essential functions of traditional QKD without the infrastructure requirements, distance limitations, side-channel vulnerabilities or high costs. The eQKD system is deployed through a combination of lightweight components integrated into host and server-side applications that is agnostic to any core technologies including authentication, random number generation & encryption algorithms. Zeroproof eQKD is a disruptive and highly scalable solution at the forefront of securing businesses against imminent quantum threats ensuring your organization stays resilient and secure in the face of evolving quantum computing risks. Contact us today for a demo of our technology.