Quantum computing may have just entered a new era. China claims to have developed a machine capable of executing operations in 25 microseconds that no conventional supercomputer could reproduce for a time that defies belief. Behind Jiuzhang 4.0, presented by the University of Science and Technology of China (USTC), an explosive issue for the crypto industry is already emerging: the future security of bitcoin in the face of the acceleration of quantum technologies. This advance also relaunches the strategic battle between Beijing and Washington in the global race for computer power.
In brief
- China has introduced Jiuzhang 4.0, a photonic quantum computer capable of manipulating 3,050 photons and performing calculations deemed impossible for classical supercomputers.
- Chinese researchers say the machine can generate some data samples in just 25 microseconds thanks to several major technical advances.
- This breakthrough reignites debates around the cryptographic security of bitcoin in the face of rapid progress in quantum computing.
- The announcement of Jiuzhang 4.0 also illustrates the rise of technological rivalry between China and the United States in the global race for quantum computing.
Jiuzhang 4.0 shatters the limits of traditional computing
The USTC officially unveiled Jiuzhang 4.0, a new version of its photonic quantum computer capable of manipulating 3,050 photons, compared to 255 for Jiuzhang 3.0 presented in 2023.
Professor Lu Chaoyang asserts that “the most complex data sample generated by Jiuzhang 4.0 requires only 25 microseconds, less time than a single blink of an eye”. According to him, “a classic supercomputer would take more than 10 to 42 years to produce the same result”.
Chinese researchers highlight several major technical advances :
- The manipulation of 3,050 photons compared to 255 for the previous generation;
- Source efficiency increased to 92%;
- The overall efficiency reaching 51%;
- Optimization of the photonic interferometer;
- A major advance in the field of Boson sampling.
This photonic architecture differs from the superconducting approaches used by IBM or Google. USTC researchers also believe that Jiuzhang 4.0 could pave the way for “trillion-qubit-mode three-dimensional cluster states”a prospect presented as a key step in the future development of quantum computing.
Bitcoin facing growing quantum pressure
The Chinese announcement immediately revives concerns around the cryptographic security of bitcoin. Several players in the ecosystem are now carefully following the progress of quantum machines capable, ultimately, of attacking the elliptical encryption systems used to secure BTC wallets. Discussions around the BIP-360 project, intended to strengthen the quantum resistance of the Bitcoin protocol, are returning to the forefront as hardware advances accelerate.
An IBM system managed to break a 15-bit ECC key, a demonstration that is certainly limited, but sufficient to fuel debate on the future vulnerability of blockchain infrastructures. For some Bitcoin developers, the threat still remains remote given current technical constraints. Others consider, on the contrary, that the ecosystem must now prepare a gradual migration towards post-quantum cryptographic standards before the capabilities of the machines really become exploitable on a large scale.
This new Chinese demonstration therefore goes beyond the simple scientific framework. It illustrates the rise of technological competition where computing power becomes an issue of sovereignty, cybersecurity and industrial domination. For bitcoin and the entire crypto sector, the question is no longer just whether quantum computing will advance, but how quickly current infrastructures will need to evolve to remain secure in the face of this new generation of machines. But, some experts think it is already too late to migrate to bitcoin.
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