Quantum Algorithms and Security

Quantum computers and quantum computation has huge potential to solve wicked problems and deliver massively impactful solutions to Australia and the world, but also brings significant security risks.

Problems that would take existing computers millennia to solve might take minutes using quantum computation. Solutions to wicked problems – like understanding how the world works simulating quantum mechanics on a quantum computer, or how to model atomic and molecular interactions from the ground up to rapidly design new therapeutics or materials for space exploration, or how to harvest energy efficiently by understanding how nature does it – might soon be at our fingertips.

But the existence of a quantum computer also brings with it new risks. New ultrapowerful computers will be able to easily crack existing and historical cryptographical security measures. There will be need for new cryptographic methods and new quantum communication and computing protocols resistant to quantum attack and with inherent security.

If we are to take advantage of this revolution, there is a need for new computational languages, methods and protocols to both access the benefits and mitigate the risks. The Quantum Technologies Future Science Platform will focus on advancing these challenges.