{"id":255490,"date":"2025-07-11T06:31:16","date_gmt":"2025-07-11T06:31:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/255490\/"},"modified":"2025-07-11T06:31:16","modified_gmt":"2025-07-11T06:31:16","slug":"texas-wants-to-lead-in-the-next-big-thing-in-computing-but-is-it-too-late","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/255490\/","title":{"rendered":"Texas wants to lead in the next big thing in computing. But is it too late?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Karoline Leonard, Austin American-Statesman
\n\u00a0|\u00a0 Hearst – Austin Transition<\/p>\n

For decades, Texas has been a leader in technology.<\/p>\n

From the days in the 1950s when Texas Instruments<\/a> was revolutionizing the semiconductor industry to now, when big investments are being made in\u00a0cybersecurity<\/a>, information technology, data centers<\/a> and artificial intelligence, the Lone Star State has rarely been afraid of backing the next big thing.<\/p>\n

Now it\u2019s doing it again. This time, it\u2019s quantum computing.<\/p>\n

Though some\u00a0say it\u2019s coming late, a\u00a0bill signed into law last month establishes the\u00a0Texas Quantum Initiative, a plan aiming to bring the state to the forefront of the rapidly growing technology.<\/p>\n

READ MORE:<\/strong>\u00a0SXSW is talking quantum. But what is quantum computing and why should you care?<\/a><\/p>\n

It\u2019s a natural progression,\u00a0said Niccolo de Masi, CEO of global quantum company IonQ.<\/p>\n

\u201cTexas has always led the computing revolution. If you look at where we were with semiconductors and CPUs and then GPUs, it should be no different for quantum,\u201d he said. \u201cThere are other states that are investing heavily in quantum generally across the country and across the globe. But given Texas is the (eighth) biggest economy in the world in its own right, we should be competing in Texas as if we were any other nation or state.\u201d<\/p>\n

Many may know the concept of quantum computing from its depictions in popular science fiction books or movies such as \u201cAnt-Man,\u201d a character played by the actor Paul Rudd in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.\u00a0In reality, quantum computing can\u2019t shrink a\u00a0superhero to the molecular level to pass to different dimensions\u00a0\u2014 but it is key to national security, future medical and pharmaceutical advancements and the\u00a0internet as we know it.<\/p>\n

New possibilities<\/p>\n

Quantum computing harnesses the power of quantum mechanics\u00a0\u2014 the behavior of particles smaller than atoms\u00a0\u2014 to solve complex problems that normal computing and supercomputers can\u2019t. Quantum mechanics enables faster calculations and lets computers explore multiple possibilities simultaneously.<\/p>\n

Normal computing exists in a binary world, with \u201cbits\u201d\u00a0\u2014 the unit of information in classical computing\u00a0\u2014 representing the value of either zero or one. Quantum computing exists beyond the binary, with quantum bits more commonly known as qubits, capable of representing zero, one or a combination of both.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is the biggest revolution in computing in 80 years,\u201d de\u00a0Masi said. \u201cWe\u2019re moving from classical to quantum. We haven\u2019t had this big a leap since the 1940s and 50s with\u2026 transistors and resistors. And we\u2019re still in the first inning.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Even in later innings, it won\u2019t turn you into Ant-Man, of course, and is unlikely to immediately affect day-to-day life for most people, said William\u00a0Hurley, CEO and founder of Austin-based quantum computing startup Strangeworks.<\/p>\n

But it will enable computers to solve problems that are impossible for even the most advanced artificial intelligence to solve.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou hear all the time about if we wanted to break encryption with today\u2019s computers, it would take thousands of years, or millions of years, or whatever the number is at the time,\u201d\u00a0Hurley said. \u201cWith a quantum computer, breaking encryption is something that will absolutely happen. People shouldn\u2019t be panicked about it. But if you want to talk about fixing the environmental concerns we have, if you want to talk about things like curing cancers or eliminating diseases or finding new forms of energy, that\u2019s where quantum computers come in. That\u2019s where they\u2019re valuable.\u201d<\/p>\n

Though AI has been the subject of much tech buzz in recent years, quantum is coming next. Big tech companies are investing in creating quantum semiconductors such as Google\u2019s Willow chip, Microsoft\u2019s Majorana 1, IBM\u2019s Condor and Amazon\u2019s Ocelot. The topic took over Southwest Conference and Festivals this March in Austin.<\/p>\n

China is investing $10 billion to build the world\u2019s largest quantum research facility. The European Union just announced a strategic plan to boost quantum innovation and research.<\/p>\n

In the U.S., California and Maryland are leading state-level quantum commitments by creating incentive and investment programs to bring companies and research to their states. Illinois is developing an entire quantum and microelectronics park just outside of downtown Chicago to support the growing field.<\/p>\n

Texas \u2018a little late\u2019<\/p>\n

As Texas throws its hat into the ring,\u00a0Hurley worries it\u2019s already behind the curve.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is the next internet and in the U.S., we\u2019ve benefited greatly from the internet. I would argue that Silicon Valley and a bunch of other areas get a lot of advantage out of that economically that other countries didn\u2019t get,\u201d he said. \u201cThis time, there\u2019s going to be a lot stiffer competition. Getting in early is important. We\u2019re not early, we\u2019re late. Maryland already has a big program, Illinois has a big program, California has a big program. We\u2019re coming to the game a little late, and this is going to reshape entire industries.\u201d<\/p>\n

READ NEXT:<\/strong> Silicon Labs CEO talks semiconductor tariffs, AI and future growth<\/a><\/p>\n

The Texas Quantum Initiative, which\u00a0Hurley backed, was also supported by de\u00a0Masi\u2019s Maryland-based IonQ, which is one of the largest quantum hardware and software companies in the world. Its stock spiked in late May when Texas lawmakers were sending the Quantum Initiative bill to Gov. Greg Abbott, who signed it June 20.<\/p>\n

De Masi, an Austin resident, said he was ready to see\u00a0Texas step onto the field\u00a0\u2014 late or not.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s huge opportunities for us because Texas is a leader in all forms of energy production and transmission of energy in a deregulated market,\u201d he\u00a0 said. \u201cAs Texas gets bigger, it becomes a target for bad state actors around the world trying to disrupt one of the world\u2019s biggest economies. And so you need the best cybersecurity equipment today. You also need the internet of the future, and the internet of the future is going to be quantum networking.\u201d<\/p>\n

House Bill 4751 established the initiative, creating an advisory committee to lead the Legislature and governor\u2019s office on how best to invest and support quantum research, design and manufacturing in the state. The law, which goes into effect Sept. 1, also creates a fund dedicated to those efforts to be disseminated in grants to companies or higher education institutions.<\/p>\n

Even before its passage, IonQ was working to build up quantum infrastructure and companies in the state, from hosting events at SXSW to working alongside Hurley\u2019s Strangeworks.<\/p>\n

The industry has been stepping up ahead of the Legislature\u2019s action, though. A decade ago, Hurley said, Texas was home to only a handful of quantum-focused companies. Now, there are at least nine in Austin alone. The University of Texas at Austin also created the Texas Quantum Institute last year to support workforce development and research.<\/p>\n

Beyond private and educational investments, this initiative is bringing quantum to the public sector.\u00a0Hurley said that\u2019s a factor that takes it beyond what the Internet\u2019s impact was in the 1990s and Texans should be prepared for a new world that\u2019s coming quickly.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn the state of Texas if you look at our economy, it\u2019s built on things like finance up in Dallas. It\u2019s built on energy over in Houston. Technology here in Austin. All of these different industries we have will be dramatically affected by quantum computing,\u201d he said.\u00a0\u201cThere\u2019s not a single part of your life that will not be touched by a quantum computer five to 10 years from now. The next five years are where the leaders will emerge in the industry, in the governments and the states and in the economies. We\u2019re in a very crucial moment in time to get involved in this technology.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Karoline Leonard, Austin American-Statesman \u00a0|\u00a0 Hearst – Austin Transition For decades, Texas has been a leader in technology.…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":255491,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3164],"tags":[3722,8668,3284,36328,98211,21003,98209,98210,5488,12,5179,5496,16374,18213,74,98208,70,53,73,369,16,15],"class_list":{"0":"post-255490","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-computing","8":"tag-computer","9":"tag-computer-science","10":"tag-computing","11":"tag-exclude","12":"tag-exclude-from-inline-linking","13":"tag-from","14":"tag-inline","15":"tag-linking","16":"tag-neutral","17":"tag-news","18":"tag-overall","19":"tag-overall-neutral","20":"tag-paul","21":"tag-paul-rudd","22":"tag-physics","23":"tag-rudd","24":"tag-science","25":"tag-technology","26":"tag-technology-news","27":"tag-texas","28":"tag-uk","29":"tag-united-kingdom"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/114833200609932536","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/255490","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=255490"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/255490\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/255491"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=255490"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=255490"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=255490"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}