Business leaders are eager for the advent of quantum computing and eager to take advantage of the process optimization it promises, according to a new study published by Fujitsu and led by independent analyst firm PAC. Conducted with interviews with 350 senior executives of companies in North America, the United Kingdom and Ireland, Germany, Spain and the Nordic region, from six different sectors: financial services, life sciences, manufacturing, retail, transport and public services.
The study reflects the gap that exists today of more than a decade for the Quantum business to be real and, therefore, respondents show their lack of time for process optimization, as it is crucial to execute your digital transformation strategies. As pressure mounts on organizations, research confirms that more and more companies are frustrated by the slow pace of progress in quantum computing.
Make the impossible possible
Although quantum computing is still not real today, it is the solution to making the impossible possible today. Because that is the promise of Quantum Computing, taking the steps in processing capabilities to open up new opportunities that transform existing business operations and create new lines of growth, which are outside of traditional technology. Hence, 81% of the business leaders surveyed in the study believe that their arrival will accelerate the optimization of commercial, logistics and industrial processes. It will transform and ensure that you remain competitive in rapidly changing markets. Companies see a great positive impact by improving core processes, and decision-makers believe that a critical part of their organization could be transformed, something that today greatly delays their digital transformation plans.
Businesses are also frustrated by the slow pace at which technology is developing, with the study finding that 50% of respondents do not expect quantum computing to become mainstream until 2030. At the same time, 89% believe that the insufficient computing power of today’s technology is preventing your business from taking full advantage of combinatorial optimization , which is the way to identify the optimal solution from a wide variety of options, to revolutionize business processes.
Such is the pent-up demand for business process optimization that two-thirds of respondents seek optimization solutions today, rather than waiting for experimental and possibly unstable quantum computing to go far into the future. This is due to the belief that competitors could gain an indisputable advantage from quantum computing. Two-thirds of respondents agree that early adoption of quantum computing by a competitor could lead to the disruption of their business sector. And for this reason, 55% of those surveyed value that they could transform a critical part of their organization, by performing a calculation for an entire business process and would give them a more solid competitive position.
The use of classical computers to find the optimal sequence in a process to eliminate inefficiency and improve productivity is possible when the number of variables is limited. However, when the process involves too many variables, a precise answer cannot be reached, evaluating all the possibilities quickly and accurately enough to obtain some practical benefit. The total cost, energy, and time required would be unfeasible, as traditional computers, even supercomputers, are reaching their limits. This is mainly because the fundamental property of a traditional computer processor is based on sequential processing.
There has been increasing research and investment in the field of quantum computing, which is non-sequential and has the potential to evaluate all possible solutions simultaneously. Various types of quantum computers are being used for experimental tests, and the potential is impressive. However, the engineering challenges involved are considerable and practical commercial systems are still some way into the future – 10 or even 20 years, if any.
