In September, the Quantum Technology International Conference, QTech 2024, will be held in Berlin, with an introduction that reads:
“The growing ability to manipulate quantum systems is paving the way for a second quantum revolution, and a number of initiatives worldwide have been formed to foster quantum technologies…” You can find out more about the QTech conference here.
Quantum computing, which harnesses the principles of quantum mechanics, will super-charge the digital revolution and AI faster than any other technological advances we’ve yet to experience. Silicon-based hardware and microchips may look like transistor radios 15 years from now once this technology is rolled out, and one of the first sectors to benefit will be digital communication. The broadly envisioned advantages of quantum computing include:
- Enhanced security and encryption
- Improved optimisation of business strategy
- Breakthroughs in data processing
- More advanced models for content creation
- Solving the existential problems of the world!
Quantum communication networks will ensure the safe and intruder-proof transmission of enormous amounts of data and information in the sensitive areas of finance, government, and defence. The trickle-down technology will infiltrate consumer gadgets and social media. This advance, by definition, will require the development of quantum-resistant encryption algorithms once we have figured out how to create the conditions for reliable quantum computations from ‘logical’ qubits. Read more here.
Quantum AI is closer than you think…
Although ‘quantum computing’ is a familiar turn of phrase and is considered a not-too-distant inevitability, like colonising Mars, the principles are theoretical and alien to those outside the realm of physics and a familiarity with the behaviour of sub-atomic particles. Now we are at the advent of turning theory into practical application as the technology giants such as IBM, Google, and Microsoft, alongside a host of newly focused and funded entrants to the field, are investing billions into quantum computing solutions that can be used today. See the forbes.com article here.
Quantum computing is a revolution within an AI revolution. When coupled with AI, it’ll be a game-changer. Be prepared to see new acronyms like QAI (Quantum Artificial Intelligence) and QML (Quantum Machine Learning) alongside hybrids like QGAI (when quantum computing is harnessed to generative AI) proliferating the world of machine learning algorithms, neural networks, and large language models (LLMs).
IBM summed up the related challenges of rolling out quantum computing:
‘Addressing ethical, regulatory, and societal implications surrounding the use of QAI technologies is essential to ensure responsible innovation and equitable access to the benefits of quantum-enabled solutions.’ ‘Addressing ethical, regulatory, and societal implications surrounding the use of QAI technologies is essential to ensure responsible innovation and equitable access to the benefits of quantum-enabled solutions.’ Full article here
This suggests that the adopters of quantum technology will generate a huge surge in the demand for skilled digital communicators familiar with the territory, not just for systems operators and language programmers and writers calibrating the language to quantum computer models, but also those who can contribute to the attendant challenges of ethics, cybersecurity, traceability, and responsibility. These will be the backbones of the rules and regulations attached to generating, storing, sharing, and validating vast quantities of information, as well as generating new content. Add to this the demand by corporates for technicians to upgrade existing systems to avoid the risk of leaving themselves open to crippling security breaches.
This would appear to undermine fears of those who predict AI will render the Human workforce redundant! As a recent Harvard Business School report articulated:
‘Even though a commercially viable quantum computer is not yet available. It’s not too soon to get prepared. Managers should focus on two key activities: vigilance and visioning.’ Full article here
Many commentators foresee a merging and a widening of business roles for digital communicators as skilled workers are tasked with new responsibilities and trained in broader roles that incorporate the new challenges posed by quantum technology.
So, if you don’t yet know a ‘qubit’ from a ‘cubit’ and you wish to avoid quantum entanglement, it’ll pay to learn the lingo and journey into the jargon now. Familiarise yourself with the hopes and fears of the ‘big tech’ CEOs, so that when you next update your CV or turn up for a new job interview, you can ask your potential employer if they are future-proofing their business with a quantum computing strategy.
Demonstrate that you are ready to take the quantum leap and savvy on the challenges of ethics, cybersecurity, data storage, and sharing. And you may wish to add that you want to save the planet.
With Firehead, you can combine ‘visioning’ with ‘vigilance’ by upskilling today in a wide range of competencies associated with technical communication and the AI revolution.
You don’t need a quantum computer to do the math: it’s odds on that you will soon need to include the terms ‘ethics’, ‘traceability’, and ‘responsibility’ on your CV to catch the attention of your dream employer.
