Research claims Willow threatens blockchain encryption.

If Google’s new chip Willow had a large quantum computer right now, it could essentially take over all the Bitcoin and make blockchain encryption useless.

This alarming statement accompanies the latest developments in quantum computing following the introduction of the new quantum chip earlier this month. Willow, which features 105 qubits — twice as many as its predecessor, Sycamore, has achieved a computation in under five minutes that would take modern supercomputers an astonishing 10 septillion years, according to Google.

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A recent, yet-to-be-peer-reviewed study published in the journal Nature by the University of Kent suggests the risks posed by quantum computers are real. This breakthrough has reignited debates about the security of blockchains, the decentralized ledgers underpinning cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin.

The researchers estimate that the downtime needed to upgrade Bitcoin's blockchain to withstand quantum threats could last up to 76 days, potentially resulting in massive losses.

Google engineers working on quantum computer. 

"Bringing your technology down... can be very, very costly, even if it’s on for a few minutes or a few hours," Carlos Perez-Delgado, coauthor and senior lecturer at the University of Kent, told the magazine Fortune. "If I had a large quantum computer right now, I could essentially take over all the Bitcoin," he added. "By tomorrow, I could be reading everybody’s email and getting into everybody’s computer accounts, and that’s just the fact."

The timeline for when quantum computers might pose a genuine threat remains uncertain. To break Bitcoin's encryption in a single day, quantum computers would need millions of qubits — far beyond current technology. Even SHA-256, the encryption standard safeguarding Bitcoin miners, could only be cracked by quantum hardware that has yet to be conceptualized, according to AllianceBernstein, a research firm.

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Although any practical threats to Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies “seem to be decades away,” Bernstein analysts told The Block, they nonetheless advised Bitcoin developers to "start preparing for a quantum future" as neither Google nor other big tech players will ever stop the pursuit for quantum computers.

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