Google parent company Alphabet (GOOGL) says its about five years away from a major breakthrough in quantum computing.
Julian Kelly, Google Quantum A.I.’s director of hardware, said that within five years, the company should be running quantum applications that can’t be conducted on today’s computers.
In a media interview, Kelly added that quantum computers should be able to do cutting-edge physics and potentially generate new kinds of data in the not-too-distant future.
Interest in quantum computing has risen sharply since Alphabet announced an advance in the technology last December that suggested a path toward working quantum computers.
There remains an ongoing debate about how long it will take until practical quantum computers are available for widespread use.
Microsoft (MSFT) caused a stir earlier this year when it revealed a new quantum computing chip called “Majorana.”
Microsoft executives said they had to create an “entirely new state of matter” to get the chip to work.
However, Nvidia (NVDA) CEO Jensen Huang caused controversy when he said that useable quantum computing technology is still decades away, comments he has since retracted.
Alphabet’s most advanced quantum computer today has 105 cubits, or the basic building block of a quantum computer.
Experts say one million or more cubits will be needed to run useful quantum applications.
Quantum computers have been a dream of scientists since the 1980s and their development is widely viewed as the next frontier in technology along with artificial intelligence (A.I.).
Alphabet’s stock has declined 10% this year to trade at $170.56 U.S. per share.
