The race towards quantum computing is no longer confined to research laboratories.
Governments, technology providers, enterprises, and academia are collectively shaping a future where quantum computing could redefine artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, and scientific discovery.
Organisations that begin preparing today will be better positioned to harness its transformative potential while mitigating the risks of tomorrow, says Sunil Verghese.
Quantum Computing heralds the next wave of AI, transcending the limits and possibilities of first-generation AI solutions and capabilities.
The quantum era could open new frontiers of AI, with speeds and capabilities far beyond what is possible with today's conventional computers, enabling new discoveries rather than merely next-word prediction or classification.
Today's conventional computers work with bits, which represent information as either 0 or 1.
Quantum computers use qubits, or quantum bits, which can work with information in a fundamentally different way.
Qubits can exist in a combination of 0 and 1 states until they are measured, a property known as superposition.
Another important property, entanglement, allows qubits to become closely connected, so that the state of one can be related to the state of another.
Together, these properties give quantum computers the potential to solve certain complex problems much faster than conventional computers.
While the number of qubits in today's machines is still relatively small, it is projected to surpass thousands in the next decade or so.
Technology leaders in AI such as IBM, Google, and Microsoft are rapidly developing quantum machines with increasingly powerful processors and capabilities.
These could lead to cutting-edge solutions in areas such as molecular biology, material science, finance, logistics, cybersecurity, along with hybrid AI and ML applications.
Advanced algorithms are being developed by researchers and scientists to address multifaceted use cases such as scheduling, routing, optimisation, and simulations.
IBM has announced that it will launch a fault-tolerant quantum computing system by 2029.
Fault tolerance essentially means that the system can detect and correct errors during computation, making quantum computers more reliable for practical applications.
IBM's Qiskit -- the Quantum Software Kit required by developers and researchers for developing custom applications and solutions -- is also helping advance the development of quantum applications. A handful of research firms are working against time to develop quantum algorithms with specialised applications.
A quantum-safe enterprise encompasses secure technologies designed to protect digital communications and information against future quantum threats.
This includes quantum-resistant encryption and digital signatures to safeguard authentication and the integrity of digital entities involved in networking and communications.
This is becoming necessary because some of today's widely used encryption and security methods could eventually be weakened by powerful quantum computers.
Existing authentication and data-integrity mechanisms could also face new challenges.
The overarching slogan for attackers -- "Harvest now and decrypt later" -- has started sending shivers down the spines of many reputed financial institutions.
The idea is simple: attackers can collect encrypted information today and potentially decrypt it in the future when sufficiently powerful quantum computers become available.
Developing Post-Quantum Cryptography (PQC) -- new security methods designed to withstand quantum attacks -- has therefore become increasingly important.
Progress, however, remains an evolving journey as organisations and researchers work towards widely adopted quantum-resistant standards.
The absence of well-framed frameworks for migration from legacy system environments, which might inherently weaken cryptographic inventory assessments, the shortage of expertise, inadequate regulatory guidelines, and uncertain business value are all posing hurdles to the evolving landscape of a quantum-enabled enterprise.
Organisations will need to understand where encryption is being used across their systems, identify their most critical information and assess which technologies could become vulnerable in the future.
A concerted effort towards knowledge fusion with internal and external experts, coupled with stakeholder engagement and accountability, is an essential enabler.
A broad-based geographical quantum strategy, well-funded endeavours for scientific breakthroughs, and the leveraging of provider infrastructure would pave the way for optimally transitioning to crypto-agile organisations -- organisations capable of adapting their security and encryption technologies as new threats and standards emerge.
The race towards quantum computing is no longer confined to research laboratories.
Governments, technology providers, enterprises, and academia are collectively shaping a future where quantum computing could redefine artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, and scientific discovery.
Organisations that begin preparing today will be better positioned to harness its transformative potential while mitigating the risks of tomorrow. The quantum race is therefore not merely about building faster computers. It is about understanding how this emerging technology could transform AI, business and cybersecurity—and preparing for that future before it arrives.