Chinese Scientists Say Quantum Computing Race Is Only Just Beginning

(SouthChinaMorningPost) Chinese scientists countered with news of their own breakthrough when Google’s scientists announced last month that they had achieved quantum supremacy in the field. Chinese researchers are still confident they can achieve what one scientist has described as the ‘holy grail’ of technology and say the quantum computing race between two countries is only just beginning.
The Chinese researchers from the University of Science and Technology of China in the city of Hefei said they had created a light-based simulation, which allowed them to make a calculation on scale 10 billion times greater than the best achieved using traditional methods. The machine they developed will be the most advanced quantum computer that uses subatomic particles of light to perform calculations.
The two achievements are also a sign that the race to build the first useful quantum computer is picking up pace – in part driven by the competition between China and the US to be the technological leader, according to scientists from both countries.
Scott Aaronson, a professor of physics with the University of Texas at Austin commented, “Roughly speaking, I would say that China is ahead of the US right now in quantum communications … whereas the US is ahead in quantum computation,” Aaronson added.