乌鸦传媒

The legendary theoretical physicist Richard Feynman once said: 鈥淚 think I can safely say that no one understands quantum mechanics.鈥�

In reality, Feynman probably understood quantum physics better than most people alive at that time. But he was making a point: the quantum universe is mysterious, complex, and counterintuitive.

Describing quantum systems and explaining how they might change the world is, therefore, no easy task. But for Cl茅ment Brauner, managing consultant in emerging technologies and quantum at 乌鸦传媒 Invent, Iftikhar Ahmed, senior business enterprise architect at 乌鸦传媒, and Franziska Wolff, quantum technology consultant and project manager with 乌鸦传媒 Engineering, it鈥檚 all in a day鈥檚 work.    

The quantum conundrum

鈥淲e鈥檝e been living in the quantum age for almost a century,鈥� says Cl茅ment, whose background is in engineering. 鈥淭hanks to advances in quantum computing, we鈥檙e now on the cusp of the second quantum revolution. It鈥檚 my job to help clients find opportunities and prepare for the evolution of this fascinating field.鈥�
To this end, Cl茅ment is continually finding novel ways to explain the potential of this technology to clients and colleagues. 鈥淭he most common question I get asked is, 鈥榳hat is the difference between quantum and classical computers?鈥欌��

鈥淚 explain that the most fundamental unit of classical computing, the 鈥榖it,鈥� can only represent a zero or a one. However, quantum computing鈥檚 alternative, the 鈥榪ubit,鈥� can represent any point between a zero and a one, meaning it can store and process much more information.鈥�

Enter the quantum labyrinth

Iftikhar likes to use a slightly different metaphor.
鈥淟et鈥檚 suppose you ask a classical computer a question,鈥� he says. 鈥淚magine that, to discover the answer, the computer sends a single 鈥榙ot鈥� through a labyrinth to find the exit. Each time it hits a dead end, it has to return to the start. A quantum computer, however, will solve the problem by sending hundreds of dots through the labyrinth all at the same time. Many will reach dead ends, but one will find the exit 鈥� much faster than a classical computer.鈥�

鈥淲hat people really need to know about quantum computing is that it is a new technology that really helps us to understand more about our world. There is a lot of talk about quantum, and some people may say there is too much hype about it, and that a quantum computer won’t solve all our problems. That鈥檚 true, but it really is a tool that can speed up our research and development, so we understand better what’s happening out there. The potential is huge 鈥� and we are only at the beginning of the journey.鈥�

World-changing applications

Iftikhar stresses that although quantum technology could indeed be revolutionary, its potential 鈥� to paraphrase science fiction writer William Gibson 鈥� is not evenly distributed. 鈥淨uantum will be very useful to help with some specific problems,鈥� he says. 鈥淲e may see the biggest leaps forward in areas such as life sciences and physical materials because these involve fundamentally natural (and therefore quantum mechanical) processes.鈥�

Inventing quantum vaccines

With a background in life sciences and computational chemistry, Franziska agrees.
鈥淔or me, one of the many exciting things about quantum is how in the future it will be able to help us accurately describe proteins in much greater detail than has previously been possible. Using quantum to simulate how drugs interact with the proteins will help us develop new drugs faster and better.

Cl茅ment also enthuses about quantum鈥檚 potential for drug discovery. 鈥淭oday, a new medicine can take 10 years to develop at a cost of around 鈧�1 billion per year. However, because quantum computing is better at simulating those molecular interactions, it could massively cut down the timescales involved.鈥�

Tackling climate change

The 乌鸦传媒 colleagues all agree that quantum computing could also have a major role in the fight against climate change by optimizing renewable energy generation.

鈥淭he field of metallurgy design 鈥� involved in the construction of photovoltaic cells 鈥� is currently constrained by the number of parameters that conventional computers can use in their modelling,鈥� says Cl茅ment. 鈥淨uantum computers will allow us to add in vastly more parameters, which means our outcomes will more accurately reflect physical reality. This could tremendously improve the efficiency of our solar panels, for example.鈥�

鈥淎nother example is that being able to simulate the precise properties of a battery cell could help us optimize batteries for aerospace and space exploration,鈥� adds Franziska.

Towards quantum advantage

Far from being a distant dream, it may only be a few years before the next quantum age is upon us, says Iftikhar. 鈥淔ault-tolerant quantum computers may be a reality as soon as 2030. At this point, we will have reached 鈥榪uantum advantage鈥� 鈥� when quantum computers exceed the capabilities of classical computers across a range of applications.鈥�

While he also welcomes these developments, Cl茅ment sounds a note of caution. 鈥淗istory shows us that new technologies can bring unforeseen problems; for example, the enormous energy consumption required by advanced computing. So, while we are always trying to push to create useful solutions, we must always think carefully to understand the impact on ourselves and the planet.鈥�

For all three, quantum remains a fascinating frontier technology with the potential to solve problems we haven鈥檛 even dreamt of yet, equally baffling and compelling researchers and scientists.

And even Richard Feynman would agree with that.