A verifiable quantum advantage from Google’s new processor has reignited discussions on crypto’s vulnerabilities, but experts confirm the technology is years away from breaking Bitcoin’s encryption.
In Brief
- Google announced a verifiable quantum advantage with its Willow processor, performing a calculation ~13,000 times faster than the world’s top supercomputer.
- The milestone, published in Nature, sparked immediate debate on quantum threats to cryptography, but the specific algorithm used cannot break Bitcoin’s encryption.
- Experts confirm that “cryptographically relevant” quantum computers are still 10-20 years away, as algorithms like Shor’s require millions of qubits, not the 105 used in this experiment.
Google Quantum AI announced a major breakthrough on October 22, 2025, achieving a verifiable quantum advantage with its 105-qubit Willow processor. The achievement, detailed in the journal Nature, ignited fresh debate over the long-term security of blockchain networks like Bitcoin, even as experts moved to clarify that the milestone poses no immediate threat to current cryptographic standards.
Google’s quantum machine performed a specialized calculation in two hours, a task that would take the Frontier supercomputer, the world’s fastest classical machine, an estimated 3.2 years. This marks the first time a quantum computer has solved a useful scientific problem faster than a supercomputer with results that can be independently verified.
A New Milestone in Quantum Performance
The breakthrough centers on a new algorithm called Quantum Echoes, which calculates the out-of-time-order correlator (OTOC), a measure of information scrambling in quantum systems. Unlike Google’s 2019 “quantum supremacy” experiment, which involved an abstract sampling problem, this result was verified by cross-checking the output against physical experiments conducted at UC Berkeley.
“This is the first time a quantum computer runs a verifiable algorithm surpassing supercomputers,” said Hartmut Neven, the founder of Google Quantum AI, in a press release. He described it as marking “a path to real-world apps like medicine.”
No Immediate Threat to Bitcoin’s Cryptography
Despite the performance leap, the new algorithm is designed for quantum simulation and is incapable of breaking the cryptographic algorithms, like ECDSA, that secure Bitcoin and other networks. Breaking that encryption would require Shor’s algorithm, which experts estimate needs a fault-tolerant quantum computer with millions of high-quality qubits.
While predictions on the arrival of a Cryptographically Relevant Quantum Computer (CRQC) vary widely, the U.S. National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) suggests one could be built “within the next twenty or so years,” according to its public guidance. Speaking to Science News, quantum expert Scott Aaronson of UT Austin described Google’s result as a “decent candidate” for verifiable advantage. His broader commentary has consistently framed such progress as a step forward for science, not a near-term panic for cryptography.
The blockchain industry is already preparing for future threats. NIST finalized its first set of post-quantum cryptographic (PQC) standards in August 2024, providing a foundation for networks to upgrade their security.
The Real Impact: A Tool for Scientific Discovery
The immediate application of Google’s breakthrough is in science, not cryptography. The Quantum Echoes algorithm functions as a “quantum microscope,” according to Yale collaborator Michel Devoret, allowing scientists to simulate and observe molecular interactions with unprecedented detail.
Ashok Ajoy, a UC Berkeley Chemistry Professor involved in the research, said the capability could help “unravel long-distance spin interactions,” benefiting fields like drug discovery and materials science. This result signals a transition for quantum computing from a theoretical field to one capable of producing specialized tools that can solve problems beyond the reach of any classical machine.
Chain Street’s Take
Google’s new quantum milestone is a scientific triumph but not a crypto crisis. While “quantum advantage” headlines fuel Bitcoin doomsday chatter, this breakthrough remains confined to physics and simulation, not cryptography.
The real takeaway for blockchain isn’t fear but foresight. Post-quantum security is already on the industry’s roadmap, and today’s 105-qubit leap is a reminder that preparing early, not panicking, is what will keep crypto secure when true quantum power finally arrives.
