University of Kwazulu-Natal

Quantum Tech Can T Yet Solve Real World Problems Nature

Bonisiwe Shabane
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quantum tech can t yet solve real world problems nature

Joan Arrow is the founder of the Quantum Ethics Project and project manager for the Womanium Quantum Solutions Launchpad, based in Arizona. Throughout my career in quantum science, I have noticed a concerning pattern. Big technology companies announce major breakthroughs, and raise much investor capital. But some of these advances are questioned within months, weeks or even days. And, in some cases, published landmark papers are later retracted from scientific journals. Access Nature and 54 other Nature Portfolio journals

Get Nature+, our best-value online-access subscription Receive 51 print issues and online access A person shows Google Quantum AI’s “Willow” chip, in this undated handout photo obtained by Reuters on December 6, 2024. Google has unveiled a new chip that it says marks a major breakthrough in the field of quantum computing, an area seen as the next frontier for many tech companies. However, while Google's achievements have been noted for advancing the field, experts say that quantum computing still has no real-world uses — yet. "We need a ChatGPT moment for quantum," Francesco Ricciuti, associate at venture capital firm Runa Capital, told CNBC on Tuesday, referencing OpenAI's chatbot that has been credited with driving the boom in artificial intelligence.

"This is probably not that." Proponents of quantum computing claim it will be able to solve problems that current computers can't. Since the early days of computing, humans have relentlessly pushed the boundaries of what machines can do. From Alan Turing’s theoretical computing machines to the silicon revolution of the late 20th century, we’ve watched our tools evolve from vacuum tubes to supercomputers capable of simulating the birth of stars. Yet even the fastest supercomputers today, from IBM’s Summit to Japan’s Fugaku, are subject to the fundamental constraints of classical physics. Their processors calculate one instruction after another—swiftly, yes, but still linearly—bounded by binary logic.

Quantum computers, however, threaten to flip this paradigm entirely on its head. Instead of bits that represent either 0 or 1, quantum computers are built upon qubits—quantum bits that can represent 0 and 1 simultaneously, thanks to a quantum property known as superposition. They can also share a kind of spooky interdependence through entanglement, a phenomenon Albert Einstein famously referred to as “spooky action at a distance.” With these properties, quantum computers don’t just compute—they explore vast... And that ability might change everything—from chemistry and material science to logistics, finance, and cryptography. But there’s one big problem: proving that quantum computers are actually better at solving real-world problems than their classical counterparts—a concept known as quantum advantage—has been frustratingly elusive. Governments and tech companies continue to pour money into quantum technology in the hopes of building a supercomputer that can work at speeds we can't yet fathom to solve big problems.

Imagine a computer that could solve incredibly complex problems at a speed we can't yet fathom and bring about breakthroughs in fields like drug development or clean energy. That is widely considered the promise of quantum computing. In 2025, tech companies poured money into this field. The Trump administration also named quantum computing as a priority. But when will this technology actually deliver something useful for regular people? NPR's Katia Riddle reports on the difference between quantum hype and quantum reality.

KATIA RIDDLE, BYLINE: Tech companies like Google and Microsoft, as well as the U.S. government, bet big on quantum computing in 2025. UNIDENTIFIED PERSON #1: Google Quantum AI is unveiling the first demonstration of verifiable quantum advantage. PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP: Joining forces on quantum computing. Keywords: Policy; Quantum physics; Scientific community; Technology. The author declares no competing interests.

At ISI’s LA Tech Week panel, researchers explored how the principles of quantum mechanics are becoming real-world technologies, with high hopes for drug discovery Quantum computing has long been relegated to the realm of thought experiments and theoretical physics, but that era is ending. At a recent panel during L.A. Tech Week, held at USC Viterbi’s Information Sciences Institute (ISI) on October 15, 2025, researchers from academia and industry gathered to discuss how quantum technology is transitioning from lab curiosity to practical tool. The conversation revealed a field at an inflection point: quantum computers are beginning to solve real problems, from simulating complex materials to potentially revolutionizing drug discovery, and the infrastructure around them is maturing rapidly. What was once “spooky” science is becoming tangible technology.

At the quantum level, things get weird. One of the core concepts is superposition, the idea that a particle can exist in multiple states at once. As moderator Haley Weinstein, a startup founder and former ISI research assistant, explained during the panel Inside the Minds Bending Our Reality, “The particle itself is in a superposition of every single thing.” There’s no clear quantum advantage yet in tests of real-world problems A D-Wave quantum computer equipped with a quantum annealing processor (shown) tackled a real-world problem that would stymie a classical supercomputer, researchers claim. The tug-of-war between quantum computers and classical computers is intensifying.

In just minutes, a special quantum processor, called a quantum annealing processor, solved a complex real-world problem that a classical supercomputer would take millions of years to complete, researchers claim March 12 in Science. And that supercomputer, the team reports, would consume more energy to run the whole computation than the entire globe uses in a year. However, another group of researchers claims to have already found a way for a classical supercomputer to solve a subset of the same problem in just over two hours. We summarize the week's scientific breakthroughs every Thursday.

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