Microsoft on Wednesday unveiled Majorana 1, a quantum chip the company says is powered by a new state of matter.
CEO Satya Nadella described it as a "breakthrough" in the advancement of quantum computing.
"Most of us grew up learning there are three main types of matter that matter: solid, liquid, and gas. Today, that changed," Nadella said in a post on X. "After a nearly 20 year pursuit, we've created an entirely new state of matter, unlocked by a new class of materials, topoconductors, that enable a fundamental leap in computing. It powers Majorana 1, the first quantum processing unit built on a topological core. We believe this breakthrough will allow us to create a truly meaningful quantum computer not in decades, as some have predicted, but in years."
Quantum computing is a rapidly evolving field of technology that combines the disciplines of computer science, math, and quantum mechanics to solve more complex calculations more quickly than is possible through classical computing. The foundation of quantum computing relies on units of information called qubits, rather than the binary bits used in classical computing.
Qubits exist in multiple states at once, like a spinning coin appearing to show both heads and tails simultaneously. They behave differently when observed and require specific conditions such as low light or extremely cold environments to replicate results reliably and without errors, which has made advancement in the field slow going.
But when they behave predictably at a large enough scale, qubits enable quantum computers to quickly calculate equations with multiple solutions and perform advanced computations that would be impossible for classical computers.
Researchers in the field agree that computations solvable through quantum computing could help discover new drugs, promote sustainable food growth in harsh climates, and develop new chemical compounds that break down plastics or break our current encryption methods, among other outcomes.
Nadella has said he believes quantum will be a global game changer when used in conjunction with advancements in artificial intelligence.
In an appearance on the "Dwarkesh Podcast," Nadella said quantum computing would be most useful for exploring how various compounds work in different states, like advancements in chemical physics and biology, rather than the data-heavy processing that AI is best at.
"The way I think of it is, if you have AI plus quantum, maybe you'll use quantum to generate synthetic data that then gets used by AI to train better models that know how to model something like chemistry or physics or what have you," Nadella said in the podcast. "These two things will get used together."
Microsoft said in a press release that its topological superconductor is a new material that isn't solid, liquid, or gas, which the company fabricated atom by atom. Where many familiar electronic devices rely on the raw material silicon in their semiconductors, Microsoft said in peer-reviewed findings released in Nature that its topological superconductor was a path forward for quantum computing to produce more stable qubits.
Troy Nelson, the chief technology officer at Lastwall, a cybersecurity provider of quantum resilient technology, told Business Insider that, since the behavior of quantum systems is often hard to prove because of the unstable nature of qubits, he'd like to see more real-world testing to confirm Microsoft's findings. He said, however, that he was "more on the optimistic side of cautiously optimistic" about the company's announcement.
"What they've done is they've created a new foundation that we can build off of," Nelson said. "Now we need to solve the production problems like the economies of scale and bringing costs down. But I see what they produced here as a new road map."
Microsoft's new topological architecture was used to develop its Majorana 1 processor, offering what the company called in its press release "a clear path to fit a million qubits on a single chip that can fit in the palm of one's hand."
"This is a needed threshold for quantum computers to deliver transformative, real-world solutions — such as breaking down microplastics into harmless byproducts or inventing self-healing materials for construction, manufacturing or healthcare," Microsoft's press release reads. "All the world's current computers operating together can't do what a one-million-qubit quantum computer will be able to do."
Nelson said Microsoft's topological breakthrough, if it can be replicated by other researchers in the field, would be a turning point that shortens the timeline for developing fully functional quantum computers to just years.
"If we really can print topoconductor to chips the size of your hand, that's just as revolutionary as the silicon transistor," Nelson said.
Microsoft's stock rose 1.25% on Wednesday following the announcement of its new quantum chip.
While Microsoft's Majorana 1 chip doesn't mean commercially useful quantum computing is right around the corner, it's the latest in a series of significant advancements in the field that leads some researchers to believe more widespread, commercial adoption will come sooner than previously expected.
In December, Google unveiled Willow, its new quantum chip, which the company says can perform a standard benchmark computation in under five minutes — a task that would take the current fastest supercomputers 10 septillion years to complete; a timeframe that exceeds the age of the universe.
But not everyone is convinced. Quantum stocks tumbled in January after Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang suggested we were still 20 years away from the technology being "very useful."
