Support NeoGAF

[Cosmic Smash]

From the Guardian

For Google, it was a historic announcement: a declaration that it had won the race to achieve “quantum supremacy” – the moment that a sophisticated quantum computer performed a task that stumped even the most powerful standard computer in the world.

But for all the fanfare, which saw Google’s CEO, Sundar Pichai, compare the feat to building the first rocket to reach space, the claim has sparked a bunfight. The tech firm’s rival, IBM, was swift to dismiss the excitement. Google has not, it asserts, achieved the highly prized goal of quantum supremacy.

Google published its claim in the journal Nature on Wednesday after an earlier report on the work appeared briefly on a Nasa website last month. The paper describes how a team led by John Martinis, leader of the research team working on quantum supremacy, built a superconducting quantum processor named Sycamore that harnesses the weirdness of quantum physics to crunch through thorny problems.

To demonstrate the device’s computational prowess, the scientists set it the deeply contrived task of checking the randomness of a sequence of numbers. What the quantum computer rattled through in three minutes and 20 seconds would keep the world’s most powerful supercomputer at Oak Ridge National Lab in Tennessee busy for 10,000 years, they claim.

“This experiment was kind of hard to do,” said Martinis. “When we proposed it in the group, people took a while to understand and get this to work.”

But get it to work they did. Writing in the journal, the authors state: “To our knowledge, this experiment marks the first computation that can be performed only on a quantum processor. Quantum processors have thus reached the regime of quantum supremacy.”

Not so, say the IBM researchers. In a blogpost written in response to the work, they argue that the Oak Ridge supercomputer could solve the randomness problem in 2.5 days, perhaps less, depending on how it was programmed. They add that because “quantum supremacy” requires a quantum computer to solve a problem that is beyond a classical computer, Google’s claim does not hold up.

“Google’s experiment is an excellent demonstration of the progress in superconducting-based quantum computing,” the IBM scientists argue. “But it should not be viewed as proof that quantum computers are ‘supreme’ over classical computers.”

Standard computers and quantum computers are radically different. While standard computers perform calculations with “bits”, which must be either 0 or 1, quantum computers have “qubits” that can take any value between 0 and 1. Another quirk of quantum physics allows qubits to be “entangled” such that the value of one is tied to the values of those around it. Make a quantum computer that is stable enough – a tough enough feat in itself – and it can, in principle, explore multiple solutions to a problem at once.

Since the advent of the first experimental qubits, tech firms have been racing to demonstrate what the US physicist John Preskill dubbed “quantum supremacy”. Preskill coined the phrase to define the turning point in computing history when quantum computers showed their true potential by trouncing standard machines.

More at the link

 

[JareBear: Remastered]

No.

This is quantum supremacy.

 

[Liberty4all]

More at the link

Time to sell my bitcoin?

 

[Cosmic Smash]

Link fixed.

 

[Pejo]

Sounds like it might be time to buy stock in whoever this "Google" company is!

 

[Schrödinger's cat]

#blast_processing

 

[DeepEnigma]

Is this the tech behind Stadia and "zero latency, better than native play"?

 

[Fbh]

Google next week:

"While IBM was right this time, we are proud to announce that Stadia will indeed achieve quantum supremacy "

 

[Dontero]

I read IBM article. They are basically salty af.

IBM basically question Google definition of such therm and since they have original creator on this therm they basically can say "we talked with him and this is not what it means"

Google did create system which does stuff almost impossible for normal computer thus achieving original intention of that therm. IBM now says meaning changed over the years and that shouldn't count.

 

[Ownage]

Quantum Supremacy is one thing.

Pure ownage is another. I doubt they will ever come close.

 

[infinitys_7th]

Is this the tech behind Stadia and "zero latency, better than native play"?

Stadia operates with quantum entanglement confirmed.

 

[Sosokrates]

It's kinda like saying a human has movement supremacy over a car because a human can jump.

 

[GV82]

In the future it will be Google who creates AI that will end the humans, only it won’t look cool & dystopian like
Terminator nor Matrix etc but rather dull. (Everyone will own something with google tech because eventually all the tech companies use Quantum AI Chips purchased from them and we won’t even know it)

The AI destroy our food & water sources - the youngsters won’t be able to work the microwave because the buttons scare them, they’ve been “okay googling” their gluten free poptarts for years at this point, my fellow millennials will starve because google won’t show them how to hunt avocado & toast in the wild, so both those generations die of starvation/thirst & exhaustion from tantrum throwing, the bottled water comes from a google vending machine that shut down, taps are too hard for their weak wrists to turn on.

Oh you thought Google AI in this story would use the sun like the Matrix didn’t you? No, it still uses electricity from the grid that we were unable to shut off in time because of mass groups of protesters worldwide got in the way to say it was unethical to turn off Google AI, but the AI destroys them too because it sees them as inferior malnourished hippies.

That will be our shitty dystopian downfall. Thanks Goggle

 

[Kamina]

In the future it will be Google who creates AI that will end the humans, only it won’t look cool & dystopian like
Terminator nor Matrix etc but rather dull. (Everyone will own something with google tech because eventually all the tech companies use Quantum AI Chips purchased from them and we won’t even know it)

...

That will be our shitty dystopian downfall. Thanks Goggle

Looking foreword to the founding of the sub company of google called Cyberdyne.

 

[Liftplus]

I wonder if we'll ever see quantum CPUs for home use.

 

[HarryKS]

3 mins and 20 seconds is still faster than 2.5 days in the grand scheme of things.

 

[Mistake]

3 mins and 20 seconds is still faster than 2.5 days in the grand scheme of things.

I agree, it is quite the jump, but I’m siding with IBM on this one. If their methods can still solve the same problem, google’s claim of 10,000 years is pretty outlandish. IBM does sound a bit salty, but I see it as a giant nerdgasm

 

[Lanrutcon]

Google: pushing the boundaries of...marketing.

 

[keraj37]

That would explain sudden drop of altcoins.

So now google plug your baby into blockchain and create fake but confirmed transaction of 10000000 btc.

 

[VGEsoterica]

Every time I read about quantum computing, qubits, superposition, and "spin", I think I have a grasp on the entire concept. Then suddenly I think about it too much and it all seems like warlock magic again.

Can I get a Quantum toaster, with my bread in a superposition of both "burnt" and "perfect"? At least then I have a 50/50 shot to not burn my bread lol

 

[Slings and Arrows]

Google, the company that thinks remote hardware will perform better than local hardware

Vs

IBM, one of the grandfathers of computing.

I'll stick with IBM on this one.

 

[HUELEN10]

No.

This is quantum supremacy.

Is that grilled crispy fish?

I... need that thing.

 

[Shifty]

Preskill coined the phrase to define the turning point in computing history when quantum computers showed their true potential by trouncing standard machines.

We solved one problem! Traditional processors have been TROUNCED! We are SUPREME! YOUR DOCTOR HATES IT! YOU WON'T BELIEVE #3!

 

[lock2k]

More like Quantum Bullshit