In the beginning, there was man and woman, then, several years later life, life’s waters were muddied with complications related to evolution, violence, invention, discovery, fire, weapons, trade, slavery, independence, more violence, even more inventions including sliced bread, ultimately leading up to present time, where nothing is complicated at all, not even a little bit.
When the first computer, known as the Universal Automatic Computer (UNIVAC), was invented, the inner machinations of the infantile tech was based on binary code. Computers store data in the form of bits, and at the heart of every bit is either a ‘1’ or ‘0’, hence binary code. In a quantum computer, bits can be stored as both a ‘1’ and a ‘0.’ A quantum computer can solve issues and process information at exponentially faster rates compared to traditional computers, which poses a threat to cybersecurity because quantum computing could be used to breach a non-quantum device faster than it would take the hacked device to respond.
In mid-November, BlackBerry (BB), the company responsible for creating the delectably archaic device which at one point was held in the hands of every business person on the planet, decided to pivot into the cybersecurity sector of the tech industry, specifically investing in quantum computing via an acquisition of Cylance. Cylance is a company Cylance is a company which uses artificial intelligence, machine learning, and other tactics to analyze and detect threats to cybersecurity, according to TechCrunch. The acquisition deal only cost BlackBerry (BB) about $1.4 billion, making it the company’s largest deal yet.
In more recent news, because you obviously want to know what’s hip and happening today, not several months ago, IBM (IBM) today announced their unveiling of IBM Q System One, the world’s first integrated universal approximate quantum computing system designed for scientific and commercial use, according to a press release regarding the announcement. The press release goes on to share that IBM’s (IBM) new quantum computer was “designed by IBM (IBM) scientists, systems engineers, and industrial designers, and has a sophisticated modular and compact design optimized for stability, reliability, and continuous commercial use.”
“The IBM Q System One is a major step forward in the commercialization of quantum computing,” said Arvind Krishna, senior vice president of Hybrid Cloud and director of IBM Research. “This new system is critical in expanding quantum computing beyond the walls of the research lab as we work to develop practical quantum applications for business and science.”
–IBM Announcement of Q System One Computer
IBM’s (IBM) announcement indicates the reality that computing devices will one day fail to put out the speed necessary to handle the work we use them for. As it relates to quantum computing, this is an area of computer technology that is only just now coming out of the woodwork. Though IBM (IBM) is celebrating their newest creation as the first fully integrated universal quantum computing system for the consumer market, it should be noted that the 20-qubit machine will not come close to meeting the futuristic expectations of how people see quantum computers being utilized. In recognition of the company’s first attempt at this type of tech, they admitted that the Q System One is “designed to, one day, tackle problems that are currently seen as too complex and exponential in nature for classical systems to handle.”
