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4 months ago in Quantum Computing By Rinku

Can quantum computers really outperform classical supercomputers?

I am trying to situate quantum computing within my broader computer architecture research. The claims of exponential speedup are compelling, but the demonstrated examples factoring with Shor's algorithm on a few qubits, or the random circuit sampling problems feel far removed from useful scientific computing. I want to understand where the field actually stands, not where the press releases say it stands.

 

All Answers (2 Answers In All)

By Venu M Answered 2 months ago

For certain exponentially hard problems like factoring large numbers or simulating quantum chemistry, a fault-tolerant quantum computer could outperform even the most powerful classical supercomputers. However, for everyday computing tasks such as data processing or standard arithmetic, classical supercomputers remain superior. Quantum computers are specialized tools, designed to tackle problems that scale poorly classically, rather than universal replacements for all computational tasks.

Replied 1 week ago

By Rinku

Thanks! That clears things up.

By Hitesh Answered 2 months ago

Exactly. Another way to think about it is that quantum computers provide algorithmic speedups for particular tasks. For example, Shor’s algorithm can factor large numbers exponentially faster than classical algorithms, and Grover’s algorithm offers quadratic speedups for searching unsorted data. But for general-purpose calculations, classical supercomputers are still more practical and reliable.

Replied 1 month ago

By Rinku

Ah, I see now. Thanks for the examples. it really helps to understand

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