Microsoft Majorana 1
In December, I published the article “Google Willow”, covering Google’s recent Quantum Computing announcement.
I started researching Quantum Computing in 2015, supported by an engagement with IBM to understand the potential for life sciences, specifically drug discovery.
Over the years, I have written a few articles covering Quantum Computing, which provide a good foundation for anyone interested in learning more about the topic.
Within the mainstream media, Quantum Computing had gone a little quiet.
Therefore, the Google Willow announcement was a welcome update and a positive sign that progress is still being made. As a reminder, Google Willow demonstrated the ability to reduce errors exponentially as quantum processors scale up using more qubits. This is a key challenge in quantum error correction.
Earlier today, Microsoft announced Majorana 1, positioned as the first quantum chip powered by a new Topological Core architecture.
The video below from Microsoft summarises the announcement.
A topological qubit is a special kind of qubit, which has historically proven more difficult to create than regular qubits.
In theory, a topological qubit is more resilient to decoherence than regular qubits, providing a robust foundation. If proven scalable, this improved reliability could deliver a significant advantage over regular qubits.
With that said, although this is a milestone for topological quantum computing, it is still a long way behind non-topological approaches.
To help understand the impact of this announcement, I would recommend reading the reaction from Scott Aaronson (Acclaimed Theoretical Computer Scientist).
As with Artificial Intelligence, it would appear Google and Microsoft are taking a leadership position in quantum computing. It will be fascinating to see which company (and approach) will rule supreme.