Quantum Computing: The Big Bang of the Digital Universe

AI Is Wild—But Quantum Computing Is Something Else Entirely

👋🏼 Hey, I’m Adam, and I once cried in the back of a SoulCycle.

I write about the intersection of technology, culture and the future—what’s breaking (most of it), what’s next (a lot), and how to stay ahead while everything shifts under our feet. AI isn’t just transforming industries; it’s rewriting the rules of work, creativity, and power. Consider subscribing, if only to find out which SoulCycle I go to.

Yes, AI is insane.

It’s moving faster than anyone predicted, upending industries, generating entire films from text prompts, and making deepfakes so realistic that your future grandkids might struggle to tell if you were ever real. But as paradigm-shifting as AI is, it’s still built on classical computing—the same binary, ones-and-zeroes logic that’s powered everything since the 1940s. Quantum computing? That’s an entirely new arena, accelerator, and existential rewrite of what “computing” even means. If AI is a jet engine strapped to the internet, quantum computing is the Big Bang before we even had space to put a jet in.

Today We’re Talking About:

• What quantum computing actually is (and why it makes AI look like a typewriter)

• The latest breakthroughs from Microsoft & Google—why they’re huge

• Why quantum will supercharge AI—think of it as putting GPT-4 on cosmic steroids

• The death (and rebirth) of storytelling, creativity, and artistic constraints

• How to spot the signs that quantum creativity is creeping into our world

• Why human-made, structured art will become more valuable than ever

The Next Transformative Leap

For decades, quantum computing has been the fever dream of physicists and the punchline of IT departments. A field so baffling that even Einstein called its core concepts "spooky action at a distance," quantum computing has long existed in the realm of Schrödinger’s cat—both alive in theory and dead in practical application. Researchers have spent years tinkering with circuits colder than interstellar space, desperately trying to wrangle quantum states into something stable enough to be useful. Meanwhile, the rest of the world has been busy asking, "So, when can I run Doom on it?"

Adam. What the fuck are you talking about. Explain it to me like I’m five.

Imagine your computer is like a very fast librarian who can only check one book at a time. Quantum computers are like magical librarians who can read every book in the library at once. This means they can solve problems way faster than normal computers. Right now, people use computers to write stories, make music, and create art—but these computers still follow simple yes-or-no rules. Quantum computers don’t have to pick just one path; they can explore every possibility at once, making stories, music, and art that change and evolve in ways we’ve never seen before. It’s like if your favourite bedtime story was different every time you read it—but somehow, always perfect.

But now, the quantum winter is thawing. With Microsoft unveiling its Majorana 1 chip—a device that harnesses the elusive and possibly mythical Majorana fermion—and Google demonstrating quantum supremacy, the field is hurtling toward real-world application. This isn’t just a slight upgrade on classical computing. If AI is a jet engine strapped to our current digital infrastructure, quantum computing is akin to bending spacetime to teleport past the finish line.

Microsoft

So far, most discussions on quantum computing have focused on its terrifying implications for cybersecurity (RIP encryption), its mind-melting potential for drug discovery (simulating molecules with quantum precision), and its ability to supercharge artificial intelligence (GPT-4 but on intergalactic steroids). But here’s the conversation no one is having loudly enough: what happens when creativity itself is no longer constrained by binary logic?

But, Adam. I work in culture. Why should I care?

Quantum computing isn’t just a faster calculator—it’s an entirely new way of thinking, one that challenges the very fabric of creativity, storytelling, and human expression. We are standing on the precipice of an artistic revolution that could make today’s AI-generated content look quaint by comparison. The possibilities are endless, literally—quantum-generated art will morph, evolve, and refuse to be pinned down, making traditional narratives and fixed media seem almost archaic.

But with this comes a deep, unsettling question: If creativity becomes infinite, does it lose meaning? When every story can be rewritten in real-time, when no two people hear the same symphony, when art refuses to be “finished”—do we begin to crave the permanence of human-made works? Will the cultural artifacts that define us become fluid, ephemeral, impossible to capture? Or will we, in response, cling harder to finite, structured, and intentionally crafted art?

Perhaps the future holds a dual renaissance—one where quantum-enhanced creativity pushes the limits of expression, while human-authored, deliberately unchangeable works become more revered than ever. Either way, we are on the cusp of something monumental. Quantum computing won’t just reshape technology; it will reshape the very essence of how we tell stories, create meaning, and understand art itself.

Quantum Computing 101: The Paradigm Shift

What Makes It Different? As mentioned above, classical computers are like overly diligent librarians who can only check out and read one book at a time—very fast, but still one at a time. Quantum computers, on the other hand, are like hyper-caffeinated librarians who can read every book in the library at once, cross-reference them instantly, and somehow also predict which book you’ll want next.

Instead of boring old bits—the dependable little 1s and 0s that have powered everything from your smartphone to supercomputers—quantum computers use qubits, which are more like indecisive philosophers that exist in multiple states simultaneously (a phenomenon called superposition). Even weirder, qubits can be entangled, meaning that changing one instantly affects the other, even if they’re light-years apart.

Why This Matters:

💡 Parallel Problem Solving: Quantum systems can process millions of possibilities at once, solving calculations that would take classical computers longer than the age of the universe to complete (yes, really).

🧠 AI on Quantum Steroids: Quantum computing could supercharge machine learning, enabling AI that thinks in probability waves instead of rigid logic trees—which could mean AI-generated content that’s truly dynamic and unpredictable.

🔬 Revolutionising Science & Creativity: From designing new materials at the atomic level to crafting entirely new storytelling paradigms, quantum