Baidu, China’s largest search engine and AI leader, recently unveiled Paddle Quantum, a quantum machine learning toolkit. This was the most recent one in a sequence of moves that Baidu had taken to merge quantum computing with AI after setting up its Quantum Computing Center in 2018.
Quantum computation is now one of the most popular fields of research. People have begun to take quantum computation very positively and are reassured of its ability. Specifically, different technologies have been built to construct all the components needed by quantum computers and are in the process of being compiled together.
The development of modern quantum algorithms and protocols, technically showing the vast benefits of quantum computation over conventional computational models, such as super-efficient algorithms for quantum machine learning and quantum simulation and the development of new technological tools or programming environments, such as Paddle Quantum, based on the Baidu deep learning platform PaddlePaddle.
Dr. Runyao Duan, Director of the Institute for Quantum Computing, Baidu Research, mentions some of the most vital aspects related to Quantum Computing in one of his recent interviews. He clarifies about a lot of essential factors like:
- Quantum Supremacy: An important increase in the consistency of one-qubit and two-qubit gates as basic building blocks for massive quantum computing chips. Quantum supremacy recorded by Google at the end of last year has greatly improved Baidu’s faith in creating bigger, fully programmable quantum chips. As soon as people can find an engineering strategy to solve the challenge of one logical qubit, quantum computing can expand exponentially.
- Future of Quantum Computing: One thing that can be assumed for sure is that the proportion of people who believe in quantum computation will boost, and quantum computing will be one of the best picks for students to follow in their Ph.D. careers. Both the number and efficiency of physical qubits will drastically improve and a range of special-purpose NISQ (Noisy Intermediate-Scale Quantum) gadgets will be used for certain potential implementation. It will be very realistic to use AI technology like deep learning and cloud computing to manipulate the quantum universe.
- The origin of Quantum Computing: Quantum computing is an interdisciplinary discipline that emerged from quantum physics and computation theory but is not a simplistic combination of both the domains. It is a modern area of study that involves the creation of new techniques and a new approach that takes years of work to train researchers.
- Obstructions and solutions: One of the greatest obstacles we face is the shortage of competent professionals in the sector. The justification for this is that quantum mechanics and computational theory are seldom taught in high schools, and are still available in several universities. One potential approach to address this is to set up an introductory curriculum on quantum computing in high schools. Another means for prospective students to get to know quantum computation is the readily available quantum programming toolkits.
- Limitations in the field of research: It seems like much of the quantum computing tools have gone to quantum computers. The software field of quantum computing — quantum algorithms, quantum AI implementations, and quantum architecture — has gained much less recognition, which is not good. Suitable software tools might significantly speed up the design of quantum devices, and there should be further research in the area of quantum software.
If practically used, business-ready quantum computers would emerge and chemistry simulation would be their main use. Through existing quantum instruments, it would be easy to evaluate the properties of small molecules, and it is really exciting to see what companies can achieve with the properties of medium-sized molecules. The effects will be immense, with applications such as drug development and material designing.
Another initial primary use would be machine learning, particularly for relatively limited datasets. Effective usage of quantum computers for crucial applications will greatly improve the knowledge of quantum mechanics and substantially advance physics education.
The term Baidu was coined from a poem published more than 800 years ago during the Chinese Song Dynasty. Baidu, whose abstract sense is ‘hundreds of times,’ is a relentless hunt for the perfect. From building a Chinese-language hunt engine to producing the world’s largest archive of Chinese natural language processing (NLP), Baidu proceeds with its mission to support quantum AI creators.
