Multiple governments around the world have secretly agreed to restrict the export of quantum computers

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2024-07-09 11:00:02

It seems that "secret international discussions" have led to an export ban for quantum computers of a certain level of power, despite scientists around the world being unable to actually explain why.

Quantum computers might seem to be a work of science fiction, but they do exist and are used by academic institutions and computing businesses around the world. Even though they're very limited in capability right now, it hasn't stopped multiple governments from secretly agreeing to limit the export of them to other countries, leaving computer scientists puzzled over the logic behind the decision.

That's according to New Scientist and it contacted the UK government for an explanation for export restriction, only to be told that the request was denied on the grounds of security. You might think that this is a very sensible decision because quantum computers are supposed to be able to crack any encryption in the blink of an eye.

However, while that's theoretically possible, quantum computers right now are too basic and error-prone to be able to do this. In fact, such machines are so far off achieving this kind of computing zenith that there's no logical reason to limit their export.