Betting big on quantum technology, data parks
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The Indian technology industry has welcomed the Budget thrust on emerging technologies, including quantum computing and building of data centre parks. The technology could propel India to the forefront of hack-proof communication in sectors such as banking, defence and national and homeland security.
The Budget has proposed an outlay of ~8,000 crore over the next five years to set up a National Mission on Quantum Technology and Applications. “Quantum technology is opening up new frontiers in computing, communications, cybersecurity with widespread applications,” Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said. “It is expected that lots of commercial applications would emerge from theoretical constructs which are developing in this area.”
Quantum computing is expected to disrupt a range of industries from cybersecurity and telecommunications to medicine, finance and manufacturing . Quantum computers can process massive and complex datasets more efficiently than classical computers (like your desktop), according to research firm CB Insights.
They use t he f undamentals of quantum mechanics to speed up the process of solving complex computations.
Experts said the US and China have committed billions of dollars in quantum computing as they understand the strategic importance of the technology to both its economy and military. Chinese President Xi Jinping has already funded a multi-billion-dollar quantum computing mega-project with the aim of reaching key quantum breakthroughs by 2030. China is also building the National Laboratory for Quantum Information Sciences. In 2018, the US President Donald Trump signed into law a Bill that enables the government to invest $1.2 billion to promote research in the field of quantum information science.
“With today ’s announcement, this government has taken a bold and much-needed step to put India on the world’s Quantum map,” said Sunil Gupta, co -Founder and chief executive at QNU Labs, which is the only firm in the country to successfully develop quantum cybersecurity products.
Qnu’s Gupta said while efforts in Quantum computing will bring benefits in several areas
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HIRANANDANI: such as new materials research, space exploration and machine learning applications, the immediate benefit of this investment will come in the area of cybersecurity, which is directly related to government focus on national
Quantum computing is the next buzzword in tech after AI and machine learning
A complex science, only a few countries in the world have programmes dedicated to it
Large tech firms — IBM, Google, Microsoft, Intel, Alibaba — working on the technology
Quantum computers will not replace current devices
This is highly specialised tech for carrying out very complex problems security. This, he said, is because the dark side of quantum computers is that these can break most of the prevalent encryption schemes putting critical data and national secrets to unimaginable risks. Some of the biggest technology players, including Google, Alibaba, Intel, IBM, and Microsoft are already betting big on quantum computing for better cybersecurity.
“A national policy for Quantum technology will be a significant step in boosting research and innovation in the country,” said Puneet Gupta, chief executive of biotechnology startup Clensta International.
Referring to data as the new oil once again, the FM said the government would soon come out with a policy to build data centre parks throughout the country. “It will enable our firms to skilfully incorporate data in every step of their value chains,” said Sitharaman.
“The announcement of the proposal to set up data centres is a step in the right direction in terms of acknowledging the importance of data and data analytics,” said Keshab Panda, chief executive and managing director of L&T Technology Services.
According to Omkar Rai, Director General, Software Technology Parks of India (STPI), the policy initiative on data centres across will strengthen the necessary It-grade infrastructure required for discharging services to the remotest part of the country.