Google Quantum Chip Breakthrough: Reducing Key Computation Error Rate, Early Bitcoin Wallet Quantum Risks Under Attention

Google stated that its Willow quantum chip reduces the error rate in preparing the special states (Magic States) required for quantum computing by about 40 times through a method called "Cultivation." The related research was published this week in Science, which is expected to lower the hardware costs of future large-scale quantum computers and draw more attention to the potential threat of cracking Bitcoin wallets.

Magic States are a key resource needed to perform certain quantum computing operations, and their preparation process consumes a significant amount of hardware. Google's experiment achieved about 99.99% state fidelity, but only about 8% of attempts passed the screening. Researchers indicated that future experiments need to be scaled up and issues such as real-time operation and error correction need to be addressed. In March of this year, Google estimated that under specific hardware assumptions, future quantum computers might only need fewer than 500,000 physical qubits to crack the cryptography used in Bitcoin and Ethereum wallets.

For Bitcoin, some early wallets' public keys have been public since their mining, theoretically making them targets for future quantum attacks; while wallets with undisclosed public keys may face different attack conditions. However, this breakthrough does not mean that quantum computers are capable of cracking Bitcoin. Google's previous cost estimates for attacks assumed the use of efficient Magic States preparation schemes, so this result cannot simply be understood as a 40-fold reduction in the cost of cracking Bitcoin. Research is still in the advancement stage of quantum hardware and error correction technology, and the complete equipment and engineering capabilities required for actual attacks have not yet been realized.