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posted by janrinok on Friday February 03, @11:54PM   Printer-friendly
from the pictures-or-it-never-happened dept.

More supposition than superposition as local media goes on Sci-Fi journey:

Quantum computers have started rolling off the production line in China, according to local media reports.

Global Times offers one of many such accounts and China Television has also covered the news.

None of the reports offer concrete detail. Indeed, many open with a reference to the presence of a quantum computer in the recently released Chinese action blockbuster "Wandering Earth 2" then enthuse about that science fiction vision having become reality.

All report that the computer was produced in the city of Hefei, which is in Anhui province where the local government is known to have funded a quantum computer lab. Some quote an outfit called Origin Quantum as having been informed of the debut by Anhui quantum lab.

Others suggest the computers were quietly slipped into production at Chinese organizations in 2021 and are now available for other buyers.

[...] In the real world, meanwhile, analysts suggest one of China's main interests in quantum computers is breaking classical encryption.

China has lots of big challenges that quantum computing could help to address. It also has enormous military ambitions, and a lengthy track record of using technology to surveil and oppress its citizens.


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  • (Score: 3, Funny) by Runaway1956 on Saturday February 04, @12:01AM (4 children)

    by Runaway1956 (2926) Subscriber Badge on Saturday February 04, @12:01AM (#1290144) Homepage Journal

    If that were true, China would have stopped all industrial espionage, spying on our government, and trying to tap our internet infrastructure, not to mention chasing after military secrets. A genuine quantum computer or six could effortlessly hack into everything we have.

    --
    Abortion is the number one killed of children in the United States.
    • (Score: 2) by legont on Saturday February 04, @03:45AM

      by legont (4179) on Saturday February 04, @03:45AM (#1290166)

      What makes you think she does not?

      --
      "Wealth is the relentless enemy of understanding" - John Kenneth Galbraith.
    • (Score: 1, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday February 04, @04:58AM

      by Anonymous Coward on Saturday February 04, @04:58AM (#1290175)

      Not only that, with their new computational prowess they would be dominating scientific and mathematical endeavors. Wake me up when that happens.

    • (Score: 2) by maxwell demon on Saturday February 04, @09:43AM

      by maxwell demon (1608) Subscriber Badge on Saturday February 04, @09:43AM (#1290211) Journal

      If that were true, China would have stopped all industrial espionage, spying on our government, and trying to tap our internet infrastructure, not to mention chasing after military secrets. A genuine quantum computer or six could effortlessly hack into everything we have.

      How exactly do you think they get the information to decrypt using the quantum computer? I mean, the US government surely doesn't send their encrypted secrets through China.

      --
      The Tao of math: The numbers you can count are not the real numbers.
    • (Score: 3, Funny) by mcgrew on Saturday February 04, @05:50PM

      by mcgrew (701) <publish@mcgrewbooks.com> on Saturday February 04, @05:50PM (#1290277) Homepage Journal

      China is the only entity who lies more than Donald Trump and George Santos, whose ethic seems to be "always lie, even when the truth will serve you better".

      --
      Carbon, The only element in the known universe to ever gain sentience
  • (Score: 2) by HiThere on Saturday February 04, @12:13AM (4 children)

    by HiThere (866) on Saturday February 04, @12:13AM (#1290147) Journal

    Judging from the summary it should have read "A news program in China claims that China is churning out quantum computers", but it's my guess that even that's an overstatement. Would you be surprised if the "Weekly World News" made a claim like that about someone/something?

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    • (Score: 3, Informative) by takyon on Saturday February 04, @06:59AM (1 child)

      by takyon (881) <takyonNO@SPAMsoylentnews.org> on Saturday February 04, @06:59AM (#1290193) Journal

      China's Origin Quantum Delivers a Commercial 24-Qubit Quantum Computer [tomshardware.com]

      China-based Origin Quantum announced this week that it had delivered its first commercial quantum computer, called Wuyuan. This is a milestone, as China becomes the third country after the U.S. and Canada to enter the quantum computing age, reports South China Morning Post. The machine uses superconducting chip technology and is equipped with its own software stack.

      Origin Quantum's Wuyuan is said to feature 24 qubits, though it is unclear how many quantum processing units (QPUs) it uses. The company also does not disclose any details about its QPUs. Meanwhile, SCMP reports that the quantum computer comes with an appropriate operating system, software, and a cloud computing platform that allows for shared remote use.

      [...] Ironically, while Origin Quantum is currently the only Chinese company that claims to have delivered a commercial quantum computer, the company was not blacklisted by the U.S. government last year, alongside numerous quantum computer makers from the People's Republic. We'll see how long that lasts, now that this announcement has been made.

      Now, while Origin Quantum says that it builds commercial quantum computers and the Wuyuan is the first 'practical' quantum machine in China, it still looks to be a one-off product. Still, The Register notes that it is available to 'other buyers' citing the government-controlled GlobalTimes.

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      [SIG] 10/28/2017: Soylent Upgrade v14 [soylentnews.org]
      • (Score: 2) by HiThere on Saturday February 04, @02:12PM

        by HiThere (866) on Saturday February 04, @02:12PM (#1290231) Journal

        OK, that *could* be lots of things. To me it sounds like a D-Wave variant. And it doesn't justify the hyperbole of the summary. (OTOH, it's a LOT more believable.)

        --
        Javascript is what you use to allow unknown third parties to run software you have no idea about on your computer.
    • (Score: 2) by driverless on Saturday February 04, @09:38AM (1 child)

      by driverless (4770) on Saturday February 04, @09:38AM (#1290210)

      I'm pretty sure it's true, I've seen the for sale on Aliexpress for a year or two now, along with 10,000,000 lumen AA-powered flashlights, 100MW solar panels, and free energy generators. Ah, those enterprising Chinese.

      • (Score: 2) by choose another one on Saturday February 04, @04:03PM

        by choose another one (515) on Saturday February 04, @04:03PM (#1290245)

        Well yeah, but thing is _normally_ when the Chinese make stuff cheap and high volume you have to wait until you've actually opened the box to see if it's DOA or not.

        Now with this... oh wait...

  • (Score: 5, Funny) by its_gonna_be_yuge! on Saturday February 04, @12:30AM

    by its_gonna_be_yuge! (6454) on Saturday February 04, @12:30AM (#1290150)

    That look and act like hot air balloons.

  • (Score: 4, Insightful) by tangomargarine on Saturday February 04, @02:54AM

    by tangomargarine (667) on Saturday February 04, @02:54AM (#1290160)

    D-Wave has been producing their "it's a quantum computer but you can only use it for this one very specific task" for years. I wouldn't start shitting bricks about all our encryption being broken just yet.

    --
    "Is that really true?" "I just spent the last hour telling you to think for yourself! Didn't you hear anything I said?"
  • (Score: 2, Funny) by nostyle on Saturday February 04, @03:42AM

    by nostyle (11497) on Saturday February 04, @03:42AM (#1290164) Journal

    Call me when a quantum computer can run javascript.

    --

    Standing tough under stars and stripes
    We can tell
    This dream's in sight
    You've got to admit it
    At this point in time that it's clear
    The future looks bright

    -Donald Fagan, I.G.Y.

  • (Score: 2) by istartedi on Saturday February 04, @05:39PM (1 child)

    by istartedi (123) on Saturday February 04, @05:39PM (#1290273) Journal

    As soon as we check to see if they're producing computers or not, we'll know.

    --
    Appended to the end of comments you post. Max: 120 chars.
    • (Score: 2) by kazzie on Sunday February 05, @12:33PM

      by kazzie (5309) Subscriber Badge on Sunday February 05, @12:33PM (#1290353)

      In the meantime, they both are and are not producing quantum computers.

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