Blockchain Developers Are Racing to Protect Against the Quantum Threat. Here's What It Means for Bitcoin and Ethereum Investors.

Blockchain developers are working to prepare for the “quantum threat” to today’s public-key cryptography, which underpins Bitcoin and Ethereum addresses. The article explains that spending from a crypto address reveals a public key, and that with a sufficiently powerful quantum computer running Shor’s algorithm, deriving the matching private key could become feasible rapidly. Google Quantum AI estimated in March that around 1,200 to 1,450 logical qubits would be required, with fewer than 500,000 physical qubits and a runtime of 18 to 23 minutes. Estimates vary, with some suggesting a tipping point before 2030 and others around 2040.