One of the most complex quantum networks built to date would allow 18 people to communicate securely thanks to the power of quantum physics. The researchers behind the work say it offers a practical path to building a global quantum internet, but others are sceptical. The long-promised quantum internet would allow quantum computers to communicate at distance by exchanging particles of light called photons that have been linked together by quantum entanglement . It would also allow networks of quantum sensors to be linked, or classical computers to send and receive unhackable communications. But wiring together a quantum world isn't as simple as laying down cables, because ensuring that one node of the network can be entangled with another is a challenge.

Scientist claim they achieved a massive breakthrough in teleportation by beaming data between quantum computers. Researchers at the University of Oxford successfully teleported logical gates - the basic components of a computer algorithm - between two quantum processors separated by more than six feet. Using particles of light (or photons), the scientists were able to form a shared quantum link between the two separate devices. This allowed two processors to work remotely, sharing the same algorithm to complete their computing tasks. The breakthrough may solve the'scalability problem' that has plagued the construction of usable quantum computers.

Quantum information will not only reformulate our view of the nature of computation and communication but will also open up fundamentally new possibilities for realizing high-performance computer architecture and telecommunication networks. Since our data will no longer remain safe in the traditional Internet when commercial quantum computers become fully available,1,2,8,15,34 there will be a need for a fundamentally different network structure: the quantum Internet.22,25,32,33,45,47 While quantum computational supremacy refers to tasks and problems that quantum computers can solve but are beyond the capability of classical computers, the quantum supremacy of the quantum Internet identifies the properties and attributes that the quantum Internet offers but are unavailable in the traditional Internet.a The quantum Internet uses the fundamental concepts of quantum mechanics for networking (see Sidebars 1–7 in the online Supplementary Information at https://dl.acm.org/doi/10.1145/3524455). The main attributes of the quantum Internet are advanced quantum phenomena and protocols (such as quantum superposition and quantum entanglement, quantum teleportation, and advanced quantum coding methods), unconditional security (quantum cryptography), and an entangled network structure. In contrast to traditional repeaters,b quantum repeaters cannot apply the receive–copy-retransmit mechanism because of the so-called no-cloning theorem, which states that it is impossible to make a perfect copy of a quantum system (see Sidebar 4). This fundamental difference between the nature of classical and quantum information does not just lead to fundamentally different networking mechanisms; it also necessitates the definition of novel networking services in a quantum Internet scenario. Quantum memories in quantum repeater units are a fundamental part of any global-scale quantum Internet. A challenge connected to quantum memory units is the noise quantum memories adds to storing quantum systems.

Researchers believe these devices could one day speed the creation of new medicines, power advances in artificial intelligence and summarily crack the encryption that protects computers vital to national security. In 2019, Google announced that its machine had reached what scientists call "quantum supremacy," which meant it could perform an experimental task that was impossible with traditional computers. Part of the challenge is that a qubit breaks, or "decoheres," if you read information from it -- it becomes an ordinary bit capable of holding only a 0 or a 1 but not both. But by stringing many qubits together and developing ways of guarding against decoherence, scientists hope to build machines that are both powerful and practical. Ultimately, ideally, these would be joined into networks that can send information between nodes, allowing them to be used from anywhere, much as cloud computing services from the likes of Google and Amazon make processing power widely accessible today.

From Santa Barbara, California, to Hefei, China, scientists are developing a new kind of computer that will make today's machines look like toys. Harnessing the mysterious powers of quantum mechanics, the technology will perform tasks in minutes that even supercomputers could not complete in thousands of years. In the fall of 2019, Google unveiled an experimental quantum computer showing this was possible. Two years later, a lab in China did much the same. But quantum computing will not reach its potential without help from another technological breakthrough.

Maëva Ghonda is a scientist born in Kinshasa, the great capital city of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Maëva is the editor-in-chief of the IEEE Quantum Computing Newsletter, the host of the Quantum AI Series Podcast, and the chair of the Quantum AI Institute. As a research scientist, her work is centered on technological innovations -- i.e. Quantum Computing, Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning -- to tackle challenges in Pharma and Healthcare (e.g. Maëva Ghonda's passion for quantum computing ignited while working as Joint Quantum Institute Scholar.

As reported by the Wall Street Journal, analysts and members of the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation (ITIF) expect that the presidency of Joe Biden will continue to make research and development for AI and quantum computing technologies a priority, although aspects of Biden's approach to regulation and spending are expected to differ. While federal investments in R&D for the Information Technology sector have fallen over the course of the last few decades, in February the White House announced a plan to increasing spending on AI and quantum technologies, and the Biden presidency is expected to continue the commitment. At the moment, total federal research and development funding sits at around $134.1 billion, while the Trump administration had proposed an increase to $142.4 billion for total federal R&D funding. In February the Trump administration announced a plan to increase annual spending on AI by more than $2 billion dollars over the course of the next two years. This was to be accompanied by an increase in funding for quantum information science to the tune of $860 million dollars over the same period.

It's the time of year when the MIT Technology Review releases its biggest breakthrough technologies for the year. These are technologies that are expected to have widespread consequences for human life in the coming year. The impetus behind satellite mega-constellations is the goal to provide every corner of the planet with high-speed internet. Satellite mega-constellations are the solution to banish spotty Wi-Fi signals and cellular connections. While enabling global connectivity for nearly anyone on the planet, these satellite mega-constellations will also litter space and dramatically increase the number of satellites in orbit very quickly.

It's the time of year when the MIT Technology Review releases its biggest breakthrough technologies for the year. These are technologies that are expected to have widespread consequences for human life in the coming year. The impetus behind satellite mega-constellations is the goal to provide every corner of the planet with high-speed internet. Satellite mega-constellations are the solution to banish spotty Wi-Fi signals and cellular connections. While enabling global connectivity for nearly anyone on the planet, these satellite mega-constellations will also litter space and dramatically increase the number of satellites in orbit very quickly.

The White House's proposed budget for fiscal year 2021 includes sizable increases in federal funding for AI and quantum computing projects. All told, the overall increase in federal R&D funding is 6% compared to fiscal year 2020, reaching $142.2 billion. Although much of the funding is aimed at R&D and infrastructure investments like $25 million to begin research for a quantum internet, the tenor of the briefing included defense tones. In espousing the need to invest in quantum information science (QIS), an official on the call said the U.S. needs to stay ahead of China and Europe, which are investing in their own quantum computing projects. U.S. CTO Michael Kratsios was clear about American values as they pertain to AI. "I think with regards to some of our adversaries and others around the world [that] utilize this technology, it's imperative that the U.S. continues to lead in technologies like AI," he said.