Google announces its latest quantum computing chip "Willow"

Yesterday, Google announced its new quantum computing chip called the “Willow.” The company claims that the Willow only takes five minutes to solve a problem compared to the world’s fastest supercomputers which would take ten septillion years to complete.

Google unveils the new quantum chip “Willow” with breakthrough achievements

So, what’s so special about Willow? Besides powerful performance, Willow can significantly reduce errors. For those unaware, quantum computing uses qubits instead of bits. Reuters notes that “qubits are fast but error-prone.” That’s because they tend to quickly exchange information with their environment.

In a published research paper, Google adds that it has found a way to string together the Willow chip’s qubits. That method helps to keep the error rate down with the higher number of qubits. The company says that the Willow has 105 qubits allowing it to correct errors in real time.

In the announcement blog post, Google Quantum AI founder Hartmut Neven writes, “This historic accomplishment is known in the field as ‘below threshold’ — being able to drive errors down while scaling up the number of qubits.” He further notes that this has been quite a challenge since Peter Shor introduced quantum error correction back in 1995.

This isn’t the first time Google has announced a quantum chip, but it certainly is a big jump. In 2019, the company claimed that its quantum chip could complete a mathematical equation in three minutes. However, IBM disputed that claim saying that it would take two-and-a-half days to solve the problem with “different technical assumptions about a classical system.”

Google now uses the in-house fab facility to produce future chips

Google says that it considered some of the previous concerns in its new estimates. However, it adds that classical computers would take a billion years to give the same results as Willow. Let’s not forget that the tech giant built the Willow quantum computing chip in its in-house fab facility.

Previously, the company fabricated chips at a shared facility at the University of California, Santa Barbara. In an interview, the chief architect for Google Quantum AI, Anthony Megrant, says, “Some of Google’s rivals are producing chips with a larger number of qubits than Google, but Google is focused on making the most reliable qubits it can.”

The rivals that Megrant highlighted are none other than Microsoft, Amazon, and IBM. The maker of the Google Pixel 9 Pro is reportedly also aiming to ramp up the production speed of future chips. Moreover, if you want to read findings related to the Willow quantum chip, please check out this research paper.