A new Microsoft chip could lead to more stable quantum computers
Microsoft has announced that it’s made significant progress in its 20-year quest to make topological quantum bits, or qubits—a special approach to building quantum computers that could make them more stable and easier to scale up.
The company says it’s developed a chip containing eight of these qubits, and has also published a Nature paper that describes a fundamental validation of the system. It’s a different approach to competitors like Google and IBM. But, if it works, it could be a significant milestone on the path to unlocking quantum computers’ dramatic new abilities to discover new materials, among many other possible applications.
Many of the researchers MIT Technology Review spoke with would still like to see how this work plays out in scientific publications, but they were cautiously optimistic. Read the full story.
—Rachel Courtland
What's driving electricity demand? It isn't just AI and data centers.
Electricity demand rose by 4.3% in 2024 and will continue to grow at close to 4% annually through 2027, according to a new report from the International Energy Agency.
There’s been a constant stream of headlines about energy demand recently, largely because of the influx of data centers—especially those needed to power AI. These technologies are sucking up more power from the grid, but they’re just a small part of a much larger story.
What’s actually behind this demand growth is complicated. Read our story to learn what’s going on.