Quantum Computing Timeline: 1980 to Today
Why start in 1980?
Physicists asked early whether computers could be built on quantum mechanics, and whether classical machines struggle to simulate it. The dates below are the publication years of the key papers or the dates of announcements, each linked to its source. For background see what is quantum computing and the 2018 to 2022 history.
1980s: the idea
- 1980. Paul Benioff publishes a quantum mechanical model of a computer based on Turing machines, in the Journal of Statistical Physics.
- 1982. Richard Feynman's paper "Simulating physics with computers" argues that simulating quantum systems calls for a computer built from quantum parts.
- 1985. David Deutsch describes a universal quantum computer in "Quantum theory, the Church-Turing principle and the universal quantum computer".
1990s: the algorithms and error correction
- 1994. Peter Shor shows that a quantum computer could factor integers and compute discrete logarithms efficiently (arXiv:quant-ph/9508027). This is the origin of the threat to RSA and elliptic curve cryptography.
- 1995. Shor also publishes the first quantum error correcting code, showing that errors in qubits can be corrected. Andrew Steane follows in 1996 (arXiv:quant-ph/9601029). See what a quantum error-correcting code is.
- 1996. Lov Grover publishes a quantum search algorithm with a quadratic speedup (arXiv:quant-ph/9605043).
2000s and 2010s: from theory to hardware
- 2001. A team at IBM and Stanford reports an experimental run of Shor's algorithm on a 7 qubit nuclear magnetic resonance machine, factoring 15 (Nature).
- 2011. D-Wave sells its first commercial quantum annealer. See gate model vs annealing.
- 2016. IBM puts a small quantum computer on the cloud, and NIST begins its public process for post-quantum cryptography standards.
- 2018. John Preskill names the current era noisy intermediate scale quantum (NISQ), meaning devices too noisy for error correction at scale (arXiv:1801.00862).
- 2019. Google reports a quantum supremacy experiment on its 53 qubit Sycamore chip (Nature), and IBM responds that a classical supercomputer could simulate it in days (arXiv:1910.09534). See supremacy vs advantage.
2020s: error correction and standards
- 2023. IBM publishes "Evidence for the utility of quantum computing before fault tolerance" in Nature. See advantage vs utility.
- 2024. NIST finalises its first post-quantum cryptography standards on 13 August (FIPS 203, 204, 205). Google announces the 105 qubit Willow chip in December, with error correction where errors fell as the code grew.
- 2025. Craig Gidney estimates that 2048 bit RSA could be broken with under a million noisy qubits in about a week (arXiv:2505.15917). IBM publishes its roadmap to a 200 logical qubit machine by 2029 (a target, not a delivered system). Google reports its Quantum Echoes algorithm on Willow in October.
- 2026. Google's whitepaper of 30 March puts the cost of breaking Bitcoin's curve at up to 1,200 to 1,450 logical qubits. Microsoft announces Majorana 2 on 2 June (company claims). Quantinuum closes its IPO in June. IBM advances to Stage C of DARPA's Quantum Benchmarking Initiative on 7 October. See how many qubits to break Bitcoin and the quantum news page.
What does the timeline show?
Three patterns stand out. Algorithms came first and hardware followed by decades. Progress now centres on error correction rather than raw qubit counts. And claims arrive from companies as well as universities, so the rule of reading primary sources and separating results from roadmaps matters. See how to follow quantum news and the quantum tracker.
Where does QNT fit?
QUANTUM (QNT) is a community token on Solana with a quantum theme. It appears nowhere on this timeline because it is not a quantum technology, and it is not affiliated with any company mentioned here.
Sources and further reading
- Benioff (1980): The computer as a physical system, Journal of Statistical Physics
- Feynman (1982): Simulating physics with computers, International Journal of Theoretical Physics
- Shor: Polynomial-Time Algorithms for Prime Factorization and Discrete Logarithms on a Quantum Computer (arXiv:quant-ph/9508027)
- Shor (1995): Scheme for reducing decoherence in quantum computer memory, Physical Review A 52, R2493
- Steane (1996): Multiple Particle Interference and Quantum Error Correction (arXiv:quant-ph/9601029)
- Grover (1996): A fast quantum mechanical algorithm for database search (arXiv:quant-ph/9605043)
- Vandersypen et al. (2001): Experimental realization of Shor's quantum factoring algorithm using nuclear magnetic resonance, Nature
- Preskill: Quantum Computing in the NISQ era and beyond (arXiv:1801.00862)
- NIST: Post-Quantum Cryptography project (process begun in 2016)
- Nature (2019): Quantum supremacy using a programmable superconducting processor
- Pednault et al.: Leveraging Secondary Storage to Simulate Deep 54-qubit Sycamore Circuits (arXiv:1910.09534)
- Nature (2023): Evidence for the utility of quantum computing before fault tolerance
- NIST: first three finalized post-quantum encryption standards (13 August 2024)
- Google: Meet Willow, our state-of-the-art quantum chip
- Nature: Quantum error correction below the surface code threshold
- Gidney (2025): How to factor 2048 bit RSA integers with less than a million noisy qubits (arXiv:2505.15917)
- IBM Quantum blog: large scale fault tolerant quantum computing (10 June 2025)
- Babbush et al., Google Quantum AI (30 March 2026): Securing Elliptic Curve Cryptocurrencies against Quantum Vulnerabilities: Resource Estimates and Mitigations
- Wikipedia: Timeline of quantum computing and communication (for further dates)
Checked 2026-10-12. Estimates are theoretical and company figures are the companies' own claims, so check the primary sources. This is education, not investment or security advice. QUANTUM (QNT) is an independent community token on Solana and is not affiliated with Quantinuum (Nasdaq: QNT) or Quant Network (QNT on Ethereum).
Frequently asked questions
When was quantum computing invented?
The idea began in the early 1980s with Paul Benioff's 1980 model and Richard Feynman's 1982 paper. David Deutsch described a universal quantum computer in 1985.
What was the first useful quantum algorithm?
Peter Shor's 1994 factoring algorithm and Lov Grover's 1996 search algorithm are the two best known early algorithms.
When did Google claim quantum supremacy?
In October 2019, with its 53 qubit Sycamore chip. IBM argued the task could be simulated classically in days.
What happened in quantum computing in 2024?
NIST finalised its first post-quantum standards in August, and Google announced the Willow chip with below-threshold error correction in December.
Next read
What Is Quantum Computing? A Plain English GuideQuantum computers use qubits instead of bits. Learn what quantum computing is, what it is good at, and why the crypto world pays attention.Read nextAlso useful: Quantum History Part 4: NISQ and the Supremacy Claims (2018 to 2022) | How to Follow Quantum News Without Getting Fooled by Hype | Quantum Supremacy vs Quantum Advantage Explained
Educational content, not financial advice. QUANTUM (QNT) is independent of Quantinuum (Nasdaq: QNT) and Quant Network (QNT on Ethereum). Live chart | Token facts