Why Quantum Computing: Intro

Entrepreneurs and enthusiasts have done a great job getting the word out about the what of quantum computing (though in the process often simplified it perhaps a bit too much), but there is very little out there about the why. Modern computers are astonishingly powerful and they do it all with good old 1s and 0s. Even the recent AI revolution is powered by transistors, simple on/off switches with no quantum mechanics required. If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it, so why look to the quantum world to change computing at all?

You might be tempted to say Shor’s algorithm (a quantum algorithm that can break the most common form of encryption today) is the obvious answer, but that is an answer to a different question: “why race to build them now.” I’m asking “why did Shor look to the quantum world in the first place?” The favourite answer to that one seems to be a quote from Feynman that I’ll paraphrase as “Nature is quantum, so your computer better be too,” but in light of the incredible state of modern computing, I think that’s pretty unsatisfactory.

So over the course of a few weeks I’ll break down the why of quantum computing from my own personal perspective, starting with what “computing” is in the first place, and then describing 3 fundamental properties of the quantum world that make it a tantalizing prospect for the next revolution in computing: particles, probabilities, and products.