---
title: "Bitcoin & Quantum Computing Sam Callahan - Swan Bitcoin"
description: "Learn why the risk of quantum computing is overblown and far away from becoming a reality in the rabbit hole below."
url: https://www.swanbitcoin.com/canon/bitcoin-and-quantum-computing/
---

# Bitcoin & Quantum Computing Sam Callahan - Swan Bitcoin

Learn why the risk of quantum computing is overblown and far away from becoming a reality in the rabbit hole below.

---

Learn why the risk of quantum computing is overblown and far away from becoming a reality in the rabbit hole below.

**Sam Callahan** ([@samcallah](https://twitter.com/samcallah))

One piece of FUD that is very common to hear is advancements in quantum computing will eventually be able to break the underlying cryptography of Bitcoin. Because both quantum computing and Bitcoin are extremely complex topics, most people who believe this actually have no idea what they're talking about.

To fix this problem, I compiled a list of resources here coming from people who actually do understand quantum computing and its impact (or lack thereof) on Bitcoin.

- [The Biggest Flipping Challenge in Quantum Computing](https://www.sciencemag.org/news/2020/07/biggest-flipping-challenge-quantum-computing) (Adrian Cho): A good overview of quantum computing and the difficulties scientists and engineers face today in the field.
- [The Limits of Quantum](https://www.cs.virginia.edu/~robins/The_Limits_of_Quantum_Computers.pdf) (Scott Aaronson): This is a great article that explains all of the current limitations of quantum computers today
- [Quantum Computing and Cryptography ](https://www.schneier.com/blog/archives/2018/09/quantum_computi_2.html) (Bruce Scheiner): This is a concise piece that explains how quantum computers are still lacking the capabilities today and that quantum-resistant algorithms are currently being developed in. public-key cryptography.
- [Can Quantum Computers Attack Bitcoin?](https://braiins.com/blog/can-quantum-computers-51-attack-bitcoin) (Braiins): A good introduction of how quantum computing could theoretically attack Bitcoin, how quantum is far behind ASICs today, and why the concern is overblown for now.
- [Here's Why Quantum Computing Will Not Break Cryptocurrencies](https://www.forbes.com/sites/rogerhuang/2020/12/21/heres-why-quantum-computing-will-not-break-cryptocurrencies/?sh=12768f5f167b) (Roger Huang): Roger explains why quantum computing is unlikely to break the cryptography of Bitcoin anytime soon without all the jargon. Good piece for beginners.
- [Bitcoin and Quantum Computing](https://www.theinvestorspodcast.com/bitcoin-fundamentals/bitcoin-quantum-computing-andrew-fursman/) (Andrew Fursman): Listen to this in-depth conversation on quantum computing from an expert the field. He explains why there are many misconceptions around quantum computing such as it’s more powerful than traditional computers.
- [Committing to Quantum Resistance: A Slow Defence for Bitcoin Against a Fast Quantum Computing Attack](https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/rsos.180410) (I. Stewart, D. Ilie, A. Zamayatin, S. Werner, M. F. Torshizi, W. J. Knottenbelt): A technical paper that proposes a way that Bitcoin could defend itself from a quantum attack. It highlights how as advancements in quantum computing occur, so too do advancements in cryptography to combat the attack.
- [Quantum Attacks on Bitcoin, and How to Protect Against Them](https://arxiv.org/pdf/1710.10377.pdf) (Divesh Aggarwal, Gavin K. Brennen, Troy Lee, Miklos Santha, Marco Tomamichel): An academic paper that explores the various ways quantum computing could in theory attack Bitcoin and various way that Bitcoin could defend against such attack vectors.
- [What Effects Would A Scalable Quantum Computer have On Bitcoin?](https://bitcoin.stackexchange.com/questions/6062/what-effects-would-a-scalable-quantum-computer-have-on-bitcoin) (Chat Forum): To end with, this is a nice discussion of the subject matter. I recommend clicking through the links scattered throughout it to learn more.