Quantum Computing Advances Bring Encryption-Cracking Machines Closer

Researchers develop more efficient quantum algorithms and hardware designs that could break common encryption within years, not decades.

Apr. 3, 2026 at 3:19pm

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A highly abstract, geometric painting in muted earth tones of green, brown, and blue, depicting sweeping arcs, concentric circles, and intricate spirals that evoke the complex mathematical and physical forces underlying the development of quantum computing algorithms designed to crack encryption.As the race to develop quantum computers capable of breaking modern encryption accelerates, the implications for digital privacy and security loom large.Princeton Today

Two separate research groups have announced significant advances in quantum computing that could allow for the creation of machines capable of breaking common encryption methods like RSA and elliptic curve cryptography within a matter of years, rather than decades as previously estimated. The Caltech team has designed a quantum computer architecture using neutral atom qubits and advanced error correction codes that could crack RSA in about 3 months using 100,000 qubits, while Google researchers have developed a 10x more efficient implementation of Shor's algorithm that could break elliptic curve cryptography with fewer than 500,000 qubits.

Why it matters

These breakthroughs underscore the rapid progress being made in quantum computing and the looming threat it poses to the digital security infrastructure that underpins much of the modern world. Policymakers and corporations will need to accelerate the transition to post-quantum cryptography to protect sensitive data and communications.

The details

The Caltech team, led by Dolev Bluvstein and Madelyn Cain, developed a quantum computer design using neutral atom qubits and advanced error correction codes called quantum low-density parity-check (qLDPC) codes. Their simulations show this architecture could crack RSA encryption in about 3 months using 100,000 qubits, or break the easier-to-crack elliptic curve cryptography (ECC) in a few days with just 26,000 qubits. Meanwhile, Google researchers led by Craig Gidney announced a new, 10x more efficient implementation of Shor's algorithm specifically for breaking ECC, estimating it could be done with fewer than 500,000 qubits.

  • In 2023, Mikhail Lukin's lab at Harvard arranged 280 neutral atoms to run sophisticated quantum algorithms.
  • In 2024, the National Institute of Standards and Technology published new post-quantum cryptographic codes.
  • Google recently announced plans to stop relying on RSA and ECC encryption by 2029.

The players

Dolev Bluvstein

A Caltech physicist and CEO of the new quantum computing startup Oratomic.

Madelyn Cain

A Caltech physicist who collaborated with Bluvstein on the quantum computer design.

Craig Gidney

A researcher at Google who led the development of a more efficient implementation of Shor's algorithm for breaking elliptic curve cryptography.

Mikhail Lukin

A Harvard physicist and founder of the neutral atom quantum computing startup QuEra Computing.

John Preskill

A senior theoretical physicist at Caltech with expertise in quantum error correction.

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What they’re saying

“If you care about privacy or you have secrets, then you better start looking for alternatives.”

— Nikolas Breuckmann, Mathematical physicist at the University of Bristol

“We're going to actually do this.”

— Dolev Bluvstein

“That tenfold reduction in the actual space-time cost of elliptic curve code breaking is hugely significant.”

— Jeff Thompson, Physicist at Princeton University and CEO of Logiqal

“If you were thinking about when you were going to do a post-quantum crypto transition, you should not be waiting any longer. This is the time to do it.”

— Jeff Thompson, Physicist at Princeton University and CEO of Logiqal

“They are broadly in line with what we and others have estimated, but in these resource estimates details matter and it is important to work them out carefully.”

— Mikhail Lukin, Harvard physicist and founder of QuEra Computing

What’s next

The judge in the case will decide on Tuesday whether or not to allow Walker Reed Quinn out on bail.

The takeaway

These quantum computing breakthroughs highlight the urgent need for organizations and governments to accelerate the transition to post-quantum cryptography in order to protect sensitive data and communications from the looming threat of encryption-cracking quantum machines, which may arrive sooner than previously expected.