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AllAfrica
2 days ago
- Science
- AllAfrica
US-China in a defining race for quantum supremacy
Quantum computing is becoming the defining battleground of the 21st-century technological rivalry between the United States and China. The stakes go beyond computational speed: at issue is who will build the technological infrastructure of the future, from intelligent supply chains and personalized medicine to quantum-secure communication and AI-enhanced robotics. Quantum computing is not only a hardware battle; it is a battle for the infrastructure of the 21st century. Fig. 1. Quantum computing combines analog and digital paradigms. Quantum computing combines the principles of computing with those of quantum mechanics. In 1981, American quantum physicist Richard Feynman noted that classical computers, whether analog or digital, struggle to simulate quantum phenomena efficiently. He argued that only a quantum system could simulate another quantum system by using the peculiar behaviors of subatomic particles as computational resources. Feynman asked: 'Could we build a computer that works like the universe itself?' That vision began to take concrete form in 1985, when British physicist David Deutsch published a landmark paper titled 'Quantum Theory, the Church-Turing Principle, and the Universal Quantum Computer .' Deutsch proposed a theoretical framework for a universal quantum computer, introducing the concept of quantum gates and circuits, the building blocks of quantum algorithms. Deutsch laid the foundational architecture for the entire field of quantum computing. At the core of quantum computers is the qubit, or quantum bit. Unlike regular bits in digital (binary) computers, which are either 0 or 1, a qubit can be both 0 and 1 at the same time, thanks to a special quantum mechanical property called superposition. This enables quantum computers to solve specific problems, such as modeling molecules, optimizing systems, or securing data, significantly faster than conventional computers. Qubits can be created in various ways, such as utilizing the spin of tiny particles like electrons or the properties of light, depending on the specific task. A qubit is typically visualized as a sphere, known as the Bloch sphere, which can be thought of as a 3D compass. The discrete structure (the polarities 0 and 1) provides the computational scaffolding: gates, circuits, and algorithms. Whether they are 0 or 1 may depend on context. Computational processes within the Bloch sphere are analog. Quantum algorithms rely on this interplay to achieve exponential speedups in solving specific problems. Fig. 2. The 'fixed' classical binary bit and the 'quantum' bits of the qubit. Analog calculations are executed within the so-called Bloch sphere. The first experimental quantum computers arrived in the late 1990s. In 1998, researchers at Oxford and MIT constructed a basic two-qubit quantum computer utilizing nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) techniques. Though limited in function, it served as a proof of concept. From the 2000s onward, quantum computing became a global technological race, involving academia, governments, tech giants, and startups. In 2006, China entered the quantum computing race when the government announced its 2020 Science and Technology Roadmap, identifying 'quantum control' as a key area of basic research . In 2021, its 14th Five-Year Plan, quantum information ranked second among cutting-edge science and technology fields, just behind artificial intelligence (AI). In March of this year, China launched a 1 trillion yuan (~US$138 billion) national venture fund, explicitly targeting quantum computing and related technologies. China's advances in quantum computing have been spectacular. In 2020, scientists at the University of Science and Technology of China (USTC) unveiled Jiuzhang, a photonic quantum computer that performed a task in 200 seconds that would have taken a classical supercomputer over 2.5 billion years. Later versions, such as Jiuzhang 2.0, further improved performance. In 2021, researchers at the University of Science and Technology of China (USTC) unveiled Zuchongzhi 2.1, a 66-qubit superconducting quantum processor that demonstrated a significant quantum advantage over classical supercomputers. In 2023, the same team announced Zuchongzhi 3.0, a 105-qubit processor that further advanced performance benchmarks, reportedly outperforming previous benchmarks, including Google's 2019 Sycamore experiment, by a factor of up to a million in specific sampling tasks. These achievements underscore China's rapid progress in hardware scaling and system optimization. Fig. 3. Quantum computing developments in the U.S. and China. China has also taken a major leap forward in building a global quantum communication network by successfully establishing an ultra-secure quantum key distribution (QKD) link between Beijing and South Africa. The breakthrough marks the latest milestone in China's ambitious Quantum Experiments at Space Scale (QUESS) program, which is centered around the satellite Micius (also known as Mozi), launched in 2016. Micius has enabled several landmark achievements in quantum communication, including a 2017 quantum-encrypted video call between China and Austria, covering 7,600 kilometers, and secure communication experiments with Russia. Quantum Key Distribution (QKD) is a method of transmitting encryption keys using quantum particles, such as photons. If intercepted, these quantum keys collapse, alerting users to a breach, thus ensuring a level of security unachievable by classical methods. The latest demonstration used China's low-cost quantum micro- and nano-satellites in tandem with mobile ground stations, signaling a shift from experimental setups to deployable systems. According to Yin Juan, a leading scientist behind Micius, this demonstration is part of China's plan to launch a global quantum communication service by 2027, targeting BRICS countries and other strategic partners. While China's quantum computing efforts are centrally coordinated and state-led, the United States thrives on a model of decentralized, grassroots innovation driven by its world-leading tech industry, academic institutions and venture capital ecosystem. Major players, including Google, IBM, Microsoft and Rigetti, are advancing diverse quantum hardware architectures, such as superconducting qubits, and hybrid platforms that integrate quantum processors with classical computing backends. One of the most notable milestones occurred in 2019, when Google's Sycamore processor achieved quantum supremacy, completing a computational task in 200 seconds that would have taken a classical supercomputer an estimated 10,000 years. (Quantum supremacy is defined as demonstrating a quantum computer's superiority over classical systems in a specific task.) Building on this success, Google unveiled its Willow processor in 2024, demonstrating progress toward fault-tolerant quantum computing through the implementation of error-corrected logical qubits—a critical step toward scalable quantum applications. Although the US has some national coordination (the National Quantum Initiative Act (2018) and government funding), its strength lies in a vibrant ecosystem characterized by diversity of approaches, interdisciplinary collaboration and a culture of high-risk, high-reward experimentation. Silicon Valley's innovation model encourages rapid prototyping, iterative design and aggressive commercialization timelines. Quantum startups receive significant backing from both public and private investors, enabling parallel experimentation across different technologies and use cases. Moreover, the United States continues to lead in foundational theoretical research. It remains at the forefront of quantum error correction, quantum algorithm development and hybrid quantum–classical integration strategies, all of which are essential for transforming quantum computing from a lab-bound curiosity into a transformative industrial technology. The link between academic research, corporate R&D and entrepreneurial dynamism positions the US as a formidable and resilient force in the quantum era. Quantum computing will transform how humans interact with machines. By fusing the strengths of both analog and digital computation, it promises to reshape human-machine interfaces (HMIs) and accelerate the convergence of AI, robotics, and advanced sensing technologies. This hybrid capability opens the door to more intuitive, responsive and adaptive machines that can engage with the world in ways closer to how humans think and feel. Traditional binary computing relies on discrete bits, symbolic logic and rule-based processing. In contrast, human experience is inherently analog: we sense the world in smooth, continuous flows of perception, motion, emotion and intention. This fundamental mismatch limits current machines' ability to interpret complex human states such as mood, focus, or intention. Quantum computing bridges this gap. As a hybrid system, it combines the fluidity of analog systems with the structure of digital logic, offering a powerful new platform for building machines that can both process continuous sensory input and make discrete, context-sensitive decisions. Fig. 4. Key features of the analog and digital principles. In the field of robotics, the tension between analog and digital systems is particularly pronounced. Human-like movement involves solving continuous motion trajectories while simultaneously making discrete decisions, such as when to stop, turn or grasp an object. This blend of fluid dynamics and symbolic logic is difficult for classical computers to manage efficiently. A similar challenge arises in brain-computer interfaces (BCIs). Brain activity is inherently analog, expressed through continuous waves and subtle fluctuations in electrical patterns. Translating these signals into discrete commands for digital systems demands enormous computational power and precision. Quantum computing opens the possibility of real-time mental control of external devices, and even the emergence of shared cognitive environments where information flows seamlessly between human and machine. In such systems, intention, attention and emotion could be sensed, decoded and responded to with unprecedented speed and sensitivity. Beyond hardware rivalry, long-term leadership in quantum computing will center on the integration of various technologies. China is still lagging behind the US in basic research, including the development of fault-tolerant systems. However, China is well-positioned to play a leading role in integrating quantum computing, AI and robotics, thanks to its unique combination of industrial capacity, policy coordination, and state-of-the-art public infrastructure. At the hardware level, China is unparalleled in its ability to produce quantum and AI components at scale. It has made breakthroughs in key technologies like superconducting quantum processors, photonic computing and scalable control systems. At the same time, China leads the world in robotics manufacturing, and its domestic companies produce competitive AI accelerator chips such as Huawei's Ascend. The vertically integrated supply chain gives China a distinct advantage in building tightly coupled quantum, AI and robotic systems. China is also expanding its geopolitical influence through technology exports, such as quantum key distribution links with Austria, Russia and South Africa, as well as robotics and AI systems across the Global South. Its ambition is not only to master these technologies but to shape global standards and infrastructure, especially among BRICS and Belt and Road countries. Fig. 5. Expected milestone in quantum computing development. (HPC refers to High Performance Computing.) Quantum computing will gradually increase its capabilities and expand into more domains. The primary users will be pharmaceutical and chemical companies, financial institutions, tech giants, governments and research institutions involved in climate modeling. Smaller users and perhaps consumers may be able to rent 'quantum computing time' in the quantum cloud. (There won't be a quantum computer on every desk, but perhaps a quantum terminal.) The jury is still out on who will win the quantum computing race. But the country that can fuse quantum computing with real-world systems, from intelligent supply chains to brain-computer interfaces, will play a leading role in the future of computation. The winner may not be the one with the first universal quantum computer, but the one that builds the first quantum-powered infrastructure of the 21st century.
San Francisco Chronicle
12-07-2025
- Business
- San Francisco Chronicle
He built one of America's bestselling wine brands. Now he's demanding ‘hundreds of millions' in court
A wine behemoth's former president filed a lawsuit on Tuesday claiming he's owed 'hundreds of millions of dollars' for his stake in one of America's bestselling wine brands. Tom Steffanci, who was the president of international wine corporation Deutsch Family Wines & Spirits for more than 15 years, has petitioned the New York Supreme Court over his former employer's refusal to buy him out of a 10% stake in Josh Cellars, which the filing estimates is 'valued in the billions.' 'This case exposes the dark underbelly of the adage that blood is thicker than water,' stated the lawsuit, which accused Deutsch of 'unlawfully' reneging on its 'obligation' to buy Steffanci out. Tuesday's filing is the latest development in an ongoing legal conflict between Steffanci and Deutsch. In a company statement, Deutsch, the seventh-largest U.S. wine company that's best known for importing the cheap Australian wine brand Yellow Tail, pointed to a lawsuit it filed against Steffanci in April "detailing allegations of wrongdoing" and said "the company looks forward to pursuing its legal remedies against Mr. Steffanci in that previously filed case." Deutsch also made headlines in May when two of its former executives pleaded guilty to a $360,000 bribery scheme. Josh Cellars was founded by Joseph Carr, a former president of the wine corporation Mildara Blass, which later merged into what is now Treasury Wine Estates. Named for his beer-drinking dad Josh, Carr set out to create an affordable California Cabernet Sauvignon. Launched in 2009, Josh was seemingly an overnight success, gaining national distribution early on. According to the filing, Steffanci identified an opportunity in 2011 for the company to 'invest in a small California wine brand with big potential: Josh Cellars.' Deutsch acquired 50% of the Josh trademark and managed all sales, marketing and winemaking. (The deal included Carr's eponymous, higher-end Napa Valley wine brand, Joseph Carr.) A year later, the company bought Carr out, but retained him as the face of Josh. Steffanci's leadership grew Josh into a 'multi-billion-dollar juggernaut,' the petition stated. It's the fastest-growing premium wine brand in the U.S., sold in virtually every liquor and grocery store across the country. In 2012, Josh was making roughly 130,000 cases annually, according to the filing. Today, it produces more than 7 million cases across over 20 labels, which typically sell for $15-$20 per bottle. The brand was featured in a COVID-19 pandemic-themed Saturday Night Live sketch and has gone viral, inspiring tongue-in-cheek memes and catchphrases. According to the petition, Steffanci signed a 12-year employment contract with Deutsch in 2013, which included the chance to purchase a 10% equity stake in the Josh Cellars and Joseph Carr trademarks. The contract stipulated that Steffanci could only sell it back to the company when his employment came to an end, according to the filing. He would forfeit the rights to cash out if he were terminated for cause or quit 'without good reason' before the end of his contract in March 2025. In 2020, while still employed at the company, Steffanci sued Deutsch, claiming it owed him royalties for his investment. A federal judge has since stayed the proceedings, and negotiations to extend Steffanci's contract broke down. Early this year, Deutsch announced the hiring of a new president, high-profile sports executive Mike Dee. In April, six days after Steffanci's employment ended, Deutsch filed a countersuit against Steffanci in Connecticut Superior Court. The lawsuit argued that Steffanci was not entitled to royalties or a buyout because he allegedly breached his contract agreement. The company claimed, for example, that Steffanci used his company email address to conduct business for his wine company, Boyanci Wines, and shared confidential company information with several people, including his wife and a banker. Tuesday's petition — which seeks to force Deutsch to obtain a third-party valuation of Josh's trademarks and subsequently buy him out for his portion — described the company's allegations as 'a shameless attempt to smear Steffanci's reputation.' Deutsch allegedly claimed it had discovered the breaches months ago, the filing stated, but chose not to terminate Steffanci. Instead, Deutsch 'continued to court' him for a contract renewal, and is now attempting to 'retroactively declare' that the contract agreement was breached. 'It defies logic,' the filing continued, 'that the Deutsch family would continue to negotiate a multi-year tenure extension with an executive who they genuinely believed deserved to be fired.' This article has been updated to include a statement from Deutsch Family Wine & Spirits.
USA Today
25-06-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
Wisconsin top in-state specialist commits to Alabama
Franklin, Wisconsin, long snapper Eli Deutsch committed to the Alabama Crimson Tide on Tuesday. As announced on X, he did so immediately on the heels of receiving an offer from the program. Kohl's Kicking Camps ranks Deutsch as a 4.5-star prospect and the No. 21 overall long snapper in the class of 2026. The rising senior at Franklin High School also notes on X that he's the third-highest-ranked player at his position in the entire Midwest. Blessed to receive an offer from The University of Alabama…and I'm officially COMMITTED. Roll Tide!" Deutsch wrote. "Thank you to my parents, coaches, and teammates for the help and support along the way!" The long snapper is a rare player from the Badger State to venture down to Alabama. The last was Oak Creek, Wisconsin, native, class of 2021 five-star offensive tackle J.C. Latham, who finished his high school career at IMG Academy in Florida. There hasn't been another player in the online recruiting rankings era to do so, according to 247Sports. Wisconsin is set to enter the 2025 season with Purdue transfer Nick Levy starting at long snapper. The program originally landed Arkansas transfer Eli Stein during the winter window, though it pivoted to Levy after several weeks of spring practice. The Badgers and Crimson Tide will meet on the football field in Week 3 this season. The game, which will be played at Bryant-Denny Stadium in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, is the second of a home-and-home series after the Badgers hosted the matchup in 2024. Contact/Follow @TheBadgersWire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Wisconsin Badgers news, notes and opinion
RTÉ News
13-06-2025
- Entertainment
- RTÉ News
Leaving Cert Diary: German and Construction cap off another week
What's another week of tough exams between friends?! The class of 2025 have another weekend to relax and unwind - we have some tips to help here! For many, the Leaving Cert is over, but our Leaving Cert Diary entries continue with thanks to members of the Irish Second-Level Students' Union (ISSU). Today, we lead off with Isabelle on German, and keep reading as Ryan tells us about his long day with Construction studies... Isabelle - Freitag, den 13. Juni 2025. The day has come. We walked into our exam halls/special centres with our heads bursting with Deutsch at 9.30 this morning. Higher level students were met with Leservrständnis 1, about a professional gamer called Till, and we were asked questions regarding his journey as a professional gamer. This was followed by a grammar section with challenging adjective endings. The second Leserverständnis followed an interview with a Munich student working in Antarctica. The questions related to the harsh winters there. I chose to do the Äußerung zum Thema about the diary writing. The questions were simple and nice, relating to how relevant it is to write diaries in our modern world. The pen pal letter had plenty of nice broad topics, including the Olympics, how we meet new people, and our morning routine. The 10 minute break between the written and aural allowed me to have a much needed stretch and movement break (fellow neurodivergent students will understand!) The Hörverständnis was the part I was very anxious about, but was extremely happy with how smooth it was. The questions were straightforward and the 40 minutes went by in a blissful breeze. I personally was highly expecting topics of AI on the paper, and so was surprised to see that it made no such appearance on neither the written or aural paper. While challenging in many ways, I found the paper relatively straightforward and there was nothing on it that my teacher hadn't prepared me for (shout-out to my wunderbar Lehrerin Frau Prior!) It was all building up to this for Ryan... The Construction Studies exam is over, after months of research and manufacturing of an artefact, a grim 4 hour day practical and a 3 hour long exam it's all finished. Construction Studies was my break from the written subjects over the past two years, I'd look forward to going downstairs to get into some practical work, but then there was the Monday classes where we would do theory, it's not a surprise that the class attendance was always better for the practical classes then the Monday theory class! Today's exam was theory based, the subject is 50% assessment before the exam and 50% for the written paper. I think the exam was fair, but definitely had a few challenges that will have surprised students because they definitely surprised me. The first question was the window detail which is one of the harder detailed drawings, there was a few tricky details thrown into it to catch people. I was happy to see a Safety question come up in Q2 however I was hoping a site safety question would come up somewhere on the paper, which it didn't! Question 3 again was a very predictable question which I was very happy with, although Q4 was definitely not expected and threw me from having options in the exam to having no options of questions. The U Values question this year again had two tricky elements thrown into it which I have to believe will have tricked some people. For the last number of years the two details stayed the same but this year they changed it so I think people will have been caught. Q6 again was a highly anticipated question on Enviormental impact which was very manageable. I personally did not study Q7,8,9 as I opted to go for the chapters that suited me better as there is a lot of choice on this paper, we have 10 options and have to answer 5 questions. Again, Q10 was a bit difficult and required critical thinking but I think most people will have got the majority of the marks here. Overall it was quite a challenging paper compared to previous years but I think students will be happy with it. I'm certainly happy to have it all over but unfortunately I still have one more exam to go, I just have to wait 10 days to do it! Founded in 2008, the ISSU is the national representative body for school students in the Republic of Ireland. The ISSU is led by students, for students.
The Hindu
09-06-2025
- Business
- The Hindu
240 ITI students participate in skill training initiative for job opportunities abroad
The Andhra Pradesh State Skill Development Corporation (APSSDC), in collaboration with Project Sarva Sethu, has launched a virtual skill training initiative to prepare ITI (Industrial Training Institute) students for employment opportunities in Germany. The programme was inaugurated by G. Ganesh Kumar, APSSDC Managing Director on Monday. Mr. Ganesh Kumar stressed the importance of learning German as a gateway to global careers and acknowledged the initial challenges of language acquisition, but assured students of full support from expert trainers. He also appreciated the involvement of Telugu-speaking professionals in Germany, who will mentor students as they adapt to international environments. More than 240 students from 14 ITI colleges participated in the first session titled 'Deutsch Level A1 – Alphabets and Pronunciation', on Monday. Project Sarva Sethu, founded by Rahul Kumar, focuses on bridging gaps between skills, cultures, and global opportunities. Through language and cultural training, the initiative empowers India's skilled and semi-skilled workforce to succeed internationally, particularly in Germany. 'Our mission is to empower India's workforce through tailored language and cultural training, ensuring participants are fully equipped to thrive globally,' said Mr. Rahul Kumar.
