Why is Australia spending a billion dollars on a quantum computer that doesn't exist yet?

2025 is the 'International Year of Quantum Science and Technology', but what actually is quantum science? IBM and AMD are teaming up to champion 'quantum-centric supercomputing' – but what's the difference between a supercomputer and a regular computer? Will we ever see a supercomputer show up in our own homes? And why is Australia making a billion-dollar bet on a quantum computing facility in Brisbane? 

Plus, how and why did scientists develop a ‘biological qubit’, and could quantum computing be the missing piece in dealing with the impacts of climate change? 

GUESTS: 

• Justin Hendry, innovation and business reporter for InnovationAus 
• Ben McAllister, Research Fellow - ARC Centre of Excellence for Dark Matter Particle Physics at Swinburne University of Technology 

This episode of Download This Show was made on Gadigal land and in Naarm.