Quantum Computing: The Final Frontier!

Apologies for the Star Trek reference at least to the Star Wars fans! But “In a galaxy far far away…” is probably a befitting metaphor for the dream of achieving Artificial General Intelligence. On the other hand, our forays into applying Quantum Mechanics to solving macro level problems plaguing most of us mere mortals is more relatable to our quintessentially human resolve to “To boldly go where no one has gone before!”

By all measures, the advances in Generative AI - in terms of extending the rather elementary mathematics behind Machine Learning and the corresponding hardware that makes the computational complexity tractable - are unworthy of being compared to other human achievements in computing. Application of Quantum Mechanics to formulating Quantum Logic, while certainly not as pivotal as the invention of Infinitesimal Calculus, is rather ingenious! Alan Turing’s famous quote about his magnum opus: “This is only a foretaste of what is to come, and only a shadow of what will be.”(sic) bears testimony to the promise that Quantum Computing holds.

The interested reader is referred to the following articles about various aspects of Quantum Logic and the concept of a Quantum Turing Machine:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quantum_logic

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quantum_logic_gate

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quantum_Turing_machine

Instead of ruminating through the compendium of knowledge about Quantum Computing, this article intends to encourage a broader discourse about the lack of corporate interest in fostering learning about the subject. Admittedly, the mathematical concepts and the programming paradigm are not easy to grasp - especially for the majority of us who have taken long to master Boolean algebra and the plethora of data structures and algorithm that make up typical business computing - but neither are they only for the gilded marble halls of academia!?

In the author’s own experience, the effort required to “familiarise” oneself with the basic terminology is quite reasonable and the consequent bewildered awe at the new frontiers that open up is rewarding unto itself. Let us then explore the “perceived” barriers to entry into the mysterious, bordering on mythical, realm of Quantum Computing.

The usual suspects are easy to identify:

• Lack of access to actual Quantum Computers with a suitably high number of qubits, although for any newbie there are quite a few providers offering freebies or at least simulators. Plus, significant advances are being made on the hardware front, notably in the UK - that too originating from Turing's Alma Mater (https://www.businessweekly.co.uk/posts/quantum-computers-set-to-scale-after-quantinuum-hardware-innovation). ?
• Lack of Quantum Algorithms to solve non NP-hard problems more efficiently than classical algorithms.
• Lack of investment in building a capability - let alone a service offering - in Quantum Computing. Even investments in Blockchain technology haven’t delivered significant revenue increases.

But above all the biggest challenge is very simply the undeniable fact that the average Joe and Jill and Tom and Richard and Shekhar and Anita and Rahim and Salma and so on have no use for Quantum Computing while scrolling through their Social Media feeds or while making serendipitous discoveries about items to add to their wardrobes or while trying to erase that annoying little blemish from that otherwise pixel perfect selfie or to organise a “watch party” for the latest melodrama or to look for inspiration for their next meal or the interminable yet mundane list of activities that make up their day.

One day - in the not so distant future - Quantum Computing will deliver a true “Digital Twin” but as the failed experiment of autonomous vehicles has shown us - the human in the loop - is irreplaceable for one simple reason: To assign blame! Or in typical corporate legal terms “To carry the Liability”!

This quandary has already forced all interested parties to devote an incredible amount of time and resources towards solving the oxymoronic problem that is “Ethical Artificial Intelligence”! Human intelligence has the dubious distinction of being far more responsible for our biggest failures as a species than human stupidity or even malice. Isn’t it futile to even dream that we can build a machine that is not susceptible to misuse? We are all far poorer students of history than of mathematics.

Nevertheless, there is no denying that the path to large scale Quantum Computing and thereby its application to solving the class of NP-hard problems is far well paved than the nebulous dream of our ability to even agree upon what “Intelligence” means - let alone how to build a truly intelligent and by extension a conscious and sentient machine.

By corollary, it behoves us to push ourselves out of our comfort zones to scale the limits of the elementary calculus that has been needlessly vilified and to take the first steps on the voyage to “Strange New Worlds” that await us beyond the final frontier of Quantum Computing!

References:

• 10 profound answers about the math behind Artificial Intelligence | by Ethan Siegel | Starts With A Bang! | Jul, 2024 | Medium
• Quantum computing: The next frontier | Synergia Foundation
• Quantum algorithms: an overview | npj Quantum Information (nature.com)
• Quantum Computing and Digital Twins | SpringerLink
• AI-obsessed bosses are about to get a rude awakening (telegraph.co.uk)
• Ethics of Artificial Intelligence | UNESCO