Quantum Computing Strengthens Bitcoin Signatures: Adam Back
Despite widespread concerns about the technology's potential to undermine cryptographic encryption, advances in quantum computing have the potential to strengthen the Bitcoin network in the coming decades.
Industry insiders have previously expressed concern that quantum computing could break cryptographic algorithms thanks to advances in quantum physics that can perform computations at previously unimagined speeds.
But despite these concerns, quantum computing could lead to a stronger Bitcoin (BTC) network, according to Blockstream founder and CEO Adam Back, creator of Hashcash and the industry's most prominent cryptographer.
Post-Quantum (PQ) is “at least several decades away” which is why a hash-based PQ scheme will never work, says X post on 21 December:
“PQ signature research will eventually produce conservative well-reviewed, more compact signatures, and Bitcoin may add to those plans as an alternative.”
Adam Back on Bitcoin and Post-Quantum Signatures. Source: Adam back
Bitcoin signatures prevent BTC transactions from being altered by another party, as an important part of the network's security mechanism. When a transaction occurs, private keys are used to sign the transfer as proof of ownership of the bitcoins by the addressee.
Following the historic success of the cryptocurrency that surpassed the milestone of $100,000 for the first time on December 6, Bitcoin and the future of its network security, in the last two weeks, the attention of investors has been increasing.
Related: How $100K Bitcoin Affects the Wealth Gap in the Digital Age
Is Google's new quantum computing chip a threat to crypto?
The threat of quantum computing disrupting cryptocurrency transactions has been rekindled by Google's new quantum computer chip. This chip can reportedly solve a computational problem in less than five minutes, a task that takes even the most advanced supercomputers roughly 10 septillion years to complete.
The new chip, known as Willow, can correct errors at a high level and perform some calculations at incredible speeds, Google Quantum AI lead Hartmut Neven said in a Dec. 9 blog post.
Neven added: “It lends credence to the idea that quantum computing occurs in many parallel universes, consistent with the idea that we live in many universes, a prediction first made by David Deutsch.”
Related: Corporate execs sell stocks as Bitcoin nears 130% YTD returns
Tech entrepreneur and former senior product manager at Google, Kevin Rose, said in a statement on Dec. 9 that Willow is still far from a threat to crypto.
According to Rose, a quantum computer estimated to break Bitcoin's encryption would require a quantum computer with roughly 13 million qubits to achieve the decryption in 24 hours.
“In contrast, Google's Willow chip has 105 qubits, a significant improvement,” he said.
Ethereum founder Vitalik Buterin is also preparing for the post-quantum era. Buterin has already proposed a way to de-risk Ethereum's quantum computing with a simple hard fork that could invalidate the issue.
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