Google's Latest Breakthrough: is it a threat to bitcoin security?

[Questat]

Thought I'd share this since it's quite an interesting announcement since it's coming from Google.

So here's the story, Google recently announced another breakthrough in quantum computing using its Willow processor,. it achieved around a 40-fold reduction in errors.

For me this is another big development that could possibly bring us closer to what some have feared and some have welcomed which is quantum computing, and those concerns about Bitcoin's security are quite serious since I believe a team of big investors has already formed a group called the Bitcoin Security Consortium to ensure the Bitcoin system remains safe.

My concern, what if they could crack those old wallets that hold millions or billions of dollars worth of Bitcoin, like Satoshi's wallets.

Some of bitcoin’s oldest holdings have had their public keys exposed since they were mined.

Bringing the magic: Google breaks open a bottleneck in quantum computing

[348Judah]

My concern, what if they could crack those old wallets that hold millions or billions of dollars worth of Bitcoin, like Satoshi's wallets.

Some of bitcoin’s oldest holdings have had their public keys exposed since they were mined.

Bringing the magic: Google breaks open a bottleneck in quantum computing

Haven't we discussed this on several occasions that quantum is not a threat to bitcoin network.

Have you considered satoshi himself being one of the strongest holders and yet his wallet has not been compromised, if we maintain a security practice that does not permit for any vulnerability, be rest assured that bitcoin network cannot be altered as well for any attack to be possible since they will never be in consensus with the protocol.

[Questat]

Haven't we discussed this on several occasions that quantum is not a threat to bitcoin network.

if it's not a threat then what is the purpose of this?

https://www.strategy.com/press/leading-financial-institutions-bitcoin-companies-launch-the-bitcoin-security-consortium_07-23-2026

A new group to help fund work on Bitcoin's long-term security, including post-quantum cryptography, and to serve as a credible source on the state of that work
TYSONS CORNER, Va., July 23, 2026 -  A group of leading financial institutions and Bitcoin companies today announced the formation of the Bitcoin Security Consortium, an initiative dedicated to supporting the long-term security and resilience of the Bitcoin network, backed by an aggregate $15 million in member pledges over the next three years.

Founding members are Anchorage Digital, ARK Invest, BlackRock, Block, Blockstream, Coinbase, Fidelity Digital Assets®, Galaxy, and Strategy, a cross-section of the institutional Bitcoin ecosystem that includes holders, custodians, exchanges, infrastructure providers, payments providers, and asset managers, united by a shared interest in Bitcoin's continued security.

The Consortium's day-to-day work is coordinated by Mike Schmidt, Executive Director of Brink, a 501c3 non-profit that funds and supports Bitcoin open-source developers, who serves in a volunteer capacity.

Have you considered satoshi himself being one of the strongest holders and yet his wallet has not been compromised, if we maintain a security practice that does not permit for any vulnerability, be rest assured that bitcoin network cannot be altered as well for any attack to be possible since they will never be in consensus with the protocol.

You explained it without considering what quantum computing could do. If you could explain well why it's not a threat to Bitcoin then I might believe you,
But these groups I posted above are serious about it, and they even pledged millions for this research, so if they don't see it as a threat why would they spend money and time on it?

What's the point?

[BIT-BENDER]

You explained it without considering what quantum computing could do. If you could explain well why it's not a threat to Bitcoin then I might believe you,
But these groups I posted above are serious about it, and they even pledged millions for this research, so if they don't see it as a threat why would they spend money and time on it?

What's the point?

It doesn't matter if it's a threat or not in this case because right now this your thread will attract spam and it is absolutely not necessary, it's ok to want some updates on quantum computing but when we already have so much thread about that topic it's unnecessary starting another one.
Do your research see through the so many threads on quantum computing and drop your contribution or questions as you please.

[Questat]

It doesn't matter if it's a threat or not

With your statement, obviously you don't consider it a threat.
did you even read the link of the story?

in this case because right now this your thread will attract spam and it is absolutely not necessary,

Then we report the spammers.
Every topic we make here always has the possibility of becoming a tourist attraction for spammers.

it's ok to want some updates on quantum computing but when we already have so much thread about that topic it's unnecessary starting another one.
Do your research see through the so many threads on quantum computing and drop your contribution or questions as you please.

I'm very much aware that there are threads about QC, but most of them are just speculation, this one  I feel its significant since the development is coming from google.

[Catenaccio]

My concern, what if they could crack those old wallets that hold millions or billions of dollars worth of Bitcoin, like Satoshi's wallets.

Some of bitcoin’s oldest holdings have had their public keys exposed since they were mined.

Quantum computers if are strong enough in computational power will be used to break, crack many things in traditional financial systems globally before they are computational powerful enough to break Bitcoin private keys.

Before I read news like quantum computers now can break all strongest passwords, invade into many governmental systems, I have no fear about risk on Bitcoin private keys and my bitcoin.

If quantum computers are such high risks, they will be prohibited by governments. The chance that governments want to use quantum computers to break Bitcoin private keys, make Bitcoin and bitcoin become useless is unknown. I don't think they have that purpose in the future because some governments started to build their national bitcoin treasuries.

[ryzaadit]

Here we go again, with a Quantum Topic again.

• Bitcoin and quantum computer fud
• How feasible is migration to Quantum-Resistant Signatures in Bitcoin?
• Will a quantum computer kill Bitcoin?
• Quantum Computing and Satoshi's Bitcoins
• Quantum computing and Bitcoin's integrity: what is actually at risk
• [Draft BIP] Quantum-Resistant Transition Framework for Bitcoin
• I would like to know your opinion on Bitcoin and quantum computers
• Quantum-Resistant Bitcoin: Is it time to replace ECDSA before it's too late?
• Could Quantum Computing Eventually Crack Bitcoin’s Private Keys?

So much discussion and threads about the quantum topic. 7-10 threads, hundreds of pages- have you ever checked each of them and drawn conclusions from the discussion that has been shared and discussed? people are to much worried on these things while actually we already working on it.

Once gain yes, these topics are a threat. Have you ever considered taking a look at or spending time with some reading material like:
1. https://www.learnbitcoin.com/rabbit-hole/quantum-and-bitcoin
2. https://chainquery.com/reports/quantum-exposure

We are working on these issues; perhaps you can follow the BIP proposed regarding these topics.

[YOSHIE]

My concern, what if they could crack those old wallets that hold millions or billions of dollars worth of Bitcoin, like Satoshi's wallets.

We are not talking about the next 10-20 years, what we are seeing now is that in my personal opinion, Google's latest breakthrough cannot be seen as a threat to Bitcoin, Currently there is no system or physical quantum computer or whatever tool we can see that there is nothing strong enough to hack the Bitcoin network, although we know there are points that might point to Bitcoin's threat to Google's latest breakthrough, such as the theory of breaking the elliptic curve cryptographic algorithm, but that hasn't happened yet.

But let's say Google's latest breakthrough is a threat to Bitcoin, my view is that the situation will impact and be vulnerable to the Bitcoin supply of old addresses, whereas currently with sophisticated technology the public key is generally exposed on the blockchain, at least it can prevent Double-Spending or Coin Ownership Validation.

[noorman0]

I do not know whether any government or authority is concerned about this development. The fact is, within the darker corners of Google’s ecosystem, there are numerous weak security systems, vulnerabilities that relevant institutions should urge the company to address by leveraging its advanced AI engines, rather than focusing on exploring crypto vulnerabilities.

[Ambatman]

Well as many have already pointed it out this is a topic with ongoing thread you could have updated it on.

Google's Latest Breakthrough: is it a threat to bitcoin security?

No it's not.
It's just proof that technology is getting closer to the stage that it could be a threat towards some adddreses
Ones with known pubkeys like that of Satoshi.
Proposals are ongoing but how to deal with Satoshi coins is kind of a grey Area.

[Orpichukwu]

Haven't we discussed this on several occasions that quantum is not a threat to bitcoin network.

We have discussed it many times in this forum, and many of those discussions still point out the danger which led to this proposal on GitHub If it’s without risk, we should not be having worries.

I do not know whether any government or authority is concerned about this development. The fact is, within the darker corners of Google’s ecosystem, there are numerous weak security systems, vulnerabilities that relevant institutions should urge the company to address by leveraging its advanced AI engines, rather than focusing on exploring crypto vulnerabilities.

We are more worried about Bitcoin security because it’s a Bitcoin community, but the quantum threat is not limited to Bitcoin alone; it's anything on the internet, military security, bank security, etc. If they are not migrating to post-quantum, there will be more danger than what we even fear in Bitcoin.

[aoluain]

I didnt read any further than the opening paragraph in that article posted in the OP

This breakthrough, published today in Science, is a crucial step towards scaling up quantum computing to practical use.

This is all we need to know and to confirm hat we need not panic at all, its a step forward,
the same as what happens with our Bitcoin core developers, they take steps forward to
improve and develop the network. . . including keeping pace with Quantum computing.

For example Microsoft didnt just stop developing when they released Windows 95!

[PostQuantumBTC]

I read about what Google was able to accomplished recently with quantum computer but there was nowhere that it was mentioned that it is already a threat to bitcoin existence.

I do not know the reason many people are very bothered about bitcoin but not bothering about their money in the banks. Quantum computers are theeat to all financial systems.

[Smartprofit]

Recently, Vitalik Buterin and another leading Ethereum developer drew the attention of the cryptocurrency community to the fact that quantum computers aren't the only ones that pose a threat to cryptocurrencies (including Bitcoin).🙋

Modern AI models that make discoveries in mathematics pose a potential threat to Bitcoin. AI is already very successful at solving mathematical problems, and they will likely become even better at them in the near future.

When Satoshi Nakamoto created Bitcoin, he used contemporary mathematical knowledge. However, if artificial intelligence makes breakthrough discoveries in this area, the entire mathematical framework upon which Bitcoin was built may turn out to be unreliable. And that would be a catastrophe far more dangerous than an attack using quantum computers. Obviously, I'm too stupid and ignorant to discuss such complex matters. However, Vitalik Buterin is one of the smartest people of our time, and he agrees that this could pose a danger.  And yes, Google has not only quantum computing developments, but also AI developments (Gemini).💁

[Cryptomultiplier]

I didnt read any further than the opening paragraph in that article posted in the OP

This breakthrough, published today in Science, is a crucial step towards scaling up quantum computing to practical use.

This is all we need to know and to confirm hat we need not panic at all, its a step forward,
the same as what happens with our Bitcoin core developers, they take steps forward to
improve and develop the network. . . including keeping pace with Quantum computing.

For example Microsoft didnt just stop developing when they released Windows 95!

While this Google's Willow is a huge leap, it still doesn't do much to dispell the fact that quantum computers are still in the premature stage where it can basically do nothing much to harm the Bitcoin network.

However, it is good advice to never reuse addresses and this is because of the possible future where post quantum upgrades become very much a thing.

[Zlantann]

While this Google's Willow is a huge leap, it still doesn't do much to dispell the fact that quantum computers are still in the premature stage where it can basically do nothing much to harm the Bitcoin network.

However, it is good advice to never reuse addresses and this is because of the possible future where post quantum upgrades become very much a thing.

Google’s Willow chip features 105 physical qubits, which is far less than what is needed to crack Bitcoin's elliptic-curve cryptography (ECDSA). A quantum machine will need more than 500,000 physical qubits for a practical attack. The Bitcoin community is already preparing for the challenges that will come with advances in quantum computers. I also think that we should be more concerned about the problems that QC will cause in other vital sectors than in Bitcoin. Sectors that offer essential services like health, transport, and more would be hit hard by QC if they don't develop the right technology to repel this threat.

[lionheart78]

Just like what you stated, @OP, the breakthrough can only bring us closer to what some feared about quantum computing.  This means, the development is still not the actual threat to Bitcoin security.  So I do not think there is a need to panic about this progress.  

If this is really a threat, then a centralized financial institution would be crazy now looking for a solution to patch the possible weakness of their security, but there is none so far.

[Rgram]

My concern, what if they could crack those old wallets that hold millions or billions of dollars worth of Bitcoin, like Satoshi's wallets.

Some of bitcoin’s oldest holdings have had their public keys exposed since they were mined.

Bringing the magic: Google breaks open a bottleneck in quantum computing

If the old wallets could be cracked, what’s stopping them from cracking existing ones, even supposedly new ones. I don’t see nothing stopping them but, I’m guessing this is never going to happen.

There would always be more and more sophistication to the network and it would continue to be protected with every technological advancement and those despoiled for these technologies would be sure to put security measures in check.

[stadus]

If the old wallets could be cracked, what’s stopping them from cracking existing ones,

The old wallets are more vulnerable as we can read here, https://github.com/bitcoin/bips/blob/master/bip-0360.mediawiki
And it was stated in the article Op shared too.

The following output types are fundamentally vulnerable to long exposure attacks:

P2PK outputs (e.g. Satoshi's coins, CPU miners)
Reused outputs*
Taproot outputs (starts with bc1p)

[boyptc]

First of all, I think this was a news since 2024. Cointelegraph posted this on Binance's square even made an article about it explaining what is it, what's the advantage/disadvantage of it for Bitcoin.

As per the article, the main highlight of this breakthrough is about its quantum error correction which is explained on their post.

--> Google’s Willow quantum chip vs. Bitcoin security — What’s at stake?

I do not know whether any government or authority is concerned about this development. The fact is, within the darker corners of Google’s ecosystem, there are numerous weak security systems, vulnerabilities that relevant institutions should urge the company to address by leveraging its advanced AI engines, rather than focusing on exploring crypto vulnerabilities.

Prolly the US government is the most concerned on this one if ever it's with the comparison of all countries which has got bitcoin holdings or interest in it.

AFAIK, Google is also working with the US government and that's why this is on their end if it's about the concern for this development.