Quantum Computers Could Break Internet Encryption by 2029, Researchers Warn
New research from Google and quantum computing startup Oratomic suggests that quantum computers capable of breaking current encryption standards could arrive a decade earlier than previously expected. The findings have prompted Cloudflare, which secures a significant portion of internet traffic, to accelerate its deadline for quantum-resistant systems from 2035 to 2029.
"We'll need to speed up our efforts considerably," said Bas Westerbaan, a cybersecurity researcher at Cloudflare.
How AI Accelerated the Breakthrough
Generative AI and LLM tools played a direct role in the research. The Oratomic team used OpenEvolve, an open-source tool that harnesses large language models like Google's Gemini and Anthropic's Claude, to optimize quantum computing algorithms.
Robert Huang, one of the paper's authors, initially saw algorithm performance that was "about 1,000 times worse" than needed. He decided to test AI optimization, expecting minimal results. Instead, the AI combined past scientific findings in novel ways, cycling through thousands of different approaches. "Without the AI, it's likely that he and his team would have tried a few ideas, seen that they didn't work and decided that 'the whole thing is not possible,'" according to the research.
The AI's proposals significantly improved performance on key algorithms. "I'm surprised by how much we were able to reduce the qubit count," said John Preskill, a quantum computing pioneer and paper author. Humans remained the primary drivers, he noted, "asking the right questions and then guiding the AI towards answers that are useful and informative."
Why This Matters for Security
Quantum computers use quantum bits (qubits) to perform certain calculations far faster than classical computers. Current encryption relies on the fact that breaking it would take longer than the age of the universe. A quantum computer could theoretically do the same work in days.
A 2025 survey found a 39% chance that quantum computers will threaten encryption within the next decade as machines grow more powerful and algorithms become more efficient. The U.S. National Institute for Standards and Technology (NIST) had set 2035 as the deadline to prepare.
The Oratomic breakthrough reduces the number of atoms needed to encode a single qubit from 100-1,000 down to just three. This makes building practical quantum computers substantially more feasible.
"Almost every system in the world becomes vulnerable altogether to a quantum attacker," Westerbaan said. The consequences could include data leaks, extortion, and businesses being taken offline.
Important Caveats
The paper has not yet been peer-reviewed. Jeff Thompson, an associate professor at Princeton and CEO of quantum computing startup Logiqal, noted that many assumptions in the research remain untested. "It's 'very easy' to reduce the size of the computer 'if you just assume better qubits,'" he said.
The Oratomic team spent months verifying the AI-derived algorithm before publishing. The authors emphasize that "many open challenges" remain before a dangerous quantum computer becomes reality.
Industry Response
Google announced on March 25 that it would secure its systems against quantum computers by 2029-six years ahead of NIST's timeline. The company has worked on superconducting quantum computers since 2014 and invested in QuEra, which develops atomic quantum computers, in 2024.
A Google spokesperson said the company has assessed atomic quantum computing for "multiple years" and published research on using AI for quantum error correction "for years as well." The statement added that "some newer entrants are now pursuing similar ideas."
Dolev Bluvstein, one of the paper's authors and co-founder of Oratomic, said the team briefed U.S. government officials before publication. The team considered carefully which methodology details were responsible to publish given the security implications. The original paper draft did not mention AI's role, but Bluvstein said a follow-up paper will detail the AI methodology.
AI Research into quantum computing continues to accelerate. Bluvstein said: "Our research over the past half year has been surprising. We are indeed seeing the effects of our research and collaborations on the broader industry landscape."
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