IBM is certainly a technology leader, and its new quantum computing chip is even able to beat standard chips in the next two years, as per the claims of its executives. The newly designed “Eagle” quantum computing chip contains 127 “qubits”, storing the information in quanta. In classical computers, all the processing is done through bits that are either 0 or 1 at a time. But what makes these qubits different is that they can be 1 or 0 simultaneously.
Quantum computers are definitely faster than classical computers, but what makes them difficult is building qubits. Huge cryogenic refrigerators are required to operate qubits correctly. Apple’s newest M1 Max chip consists of 57 billion transistors that work as proxies for bits, but as per IBM’s claims, the Eagle chip is the first chip that contains more than 100 qubits.
IBM also plans to design the “Osprey” chip in 2022, which will contain 433 qubits, and the “Condor” chip, which will contain 1121 qubits. IBM’s new technology has paved the way for making more qubits. These new techniques will eventually result in more qubits when combined with other advances in the quantum computer’s refrigeration and control systems.
The company says it is close to “quantum advantage” when conventional computers will be able to beat classical computers. But, as per Darío Gil, who works as a senior vice president at IBM and also heads his research division, this will not occur at once and quantum computers will not overtake normal computers all of a sudden. As per his claim, he envisions that it will be a hybrid regime in which some of the parts of computers will be based on quantum chips and some will function on normal chips.