Artificial intelligence is dramatically speeding up the timeline for quantum computers to break modern encryption, forcing the crypto industry and broader digital infrastructure to rethink security from the ground up. Researchers and security experts now warn that the combination of AI and quantum computing is creating an urgent cybersecurity arms race, where defenders must continuously evolve their defenses just to survive.

How Is AI Accelerating the Quantum Threat?

The convergence of AI and quantum computing has become increasingly urgent following warnings from major technology firms and researchers. Machine learning systems are already being deployed to optimize quantum error correction, one of the field's biggest engineering bottlenecks. This creates a self-reinforcing cycle: AI helps build better quantum computers, which in turn could be used to develop even more powerful AI systems.

• Error Correction Optimization: Researchers are using machine learning to solve quantum error correction, a critical challenge that has long slowed quantum development.
• Material Discovery: AI systems have already been used since 2016 to discover new materials for quantum hardware, accelerating the pace of innovation.
• Self-Reinforcing Cycle: The next generation of quantum computers may be built with AI assistance, creating a feedback loop that compounds development speed.

"AI is definitely being used to accelerate the development of quantum computing," said Alex Pruden, CEO of Project Eleven, a company focused on quantum-resistant infrastructure for crypto.

Alex Pruden, CEO of Project Eleven

Illia Polosukhin, co-founder of NEAR Protocol and a former Google AI researcher, emphasized that the acceleration is already visible. "The rate of research is going to accelerate from here, and we have already seen progress that people didn't expect would come this early," he noted.

What Does "Harvest Now, Decrypt Later" Mean for Your Data?

Security researchers are increasingly concerned about a strategy called "harvest now, decrypt later," where adversaries collect encrypted internet traffic today with the expectation that future quantum computers will eventually decrypt it. This threat is no longer theoretical. If sophisticated actors or governments believe quantum computers are arriving within a couple of years, they are likely already capturing sensitive data with the intention of decrypting it once quantum systems become powerful enough.

The implications are severe. "Everything we're putting on the internet, if you're identifiable as a person of interest, you can assume will be decrypted in two years," Polosukhin warned, adding that "it's most likely happening already".

For blockchain networks, the threat is especially acute. Most cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin and Ethereum, rely on elliptic curve cryptography, the same encryption standard used across the broader internet. A sufficiently powerful quantum computer could theoretically derive private keys from public keys, allowing attackers to compromise vulnerable wallets and drain funds.

How Are Tech Companies Responding to the Quantum Threat?

The security landscape is shifting from static, decade-long upgrade cycles to continuous, adaptive evolution. Several blockchain ecosystems are already taking action. Ethereum, Zcash, Solana, Ripple, and NEAR are actively researching or implementing post-quantum migration strategies to protect their networks before quantum computers become a practical threat.

NEAR Protocol recently announced plans to integrate post-quantum cryptography directly into its account infrastructure, allowing users to rotate cryptographic schemes without migrating assets to entirely new wallets. This approach reflects a fundamental shift in how security is being designed. "Back in 2018, when we were designing NEAR, we were like: 'Hey, quantum will come, we should have an easy way to do it,'" Polosukhin explained.

However, the transition remains technically challenging. Post-quantum cryptographic systems are often significantly larger and slower than current standards. "The cryptography that's currently standardized for post-quantum is very big and slow," Polosukhin noted, highlighting a key engineering hurdle that developers must overcome.

Why Is IBM Positioning Itself as a Quantum Leader?

While security concerns dominate headlines, IBM is quietly building a long-term advantage in quantum computing itself. The company launched IBM Quantum a decade ago and has been steadily advancing the technology toward real-world applications. Unlike competitors focused solely on adding more qubits, IBM's Heron processor prioritizes achieving the lowest possible error rates, addressing the fundamental reliability challenge that has plagued quantum systems.

IBM has achieved every milestone it set out to achieve in quantum computing, and has done so ahead of schedule. The company aims to produce the first-ever large-scale, fault-tolerant quantum computer by 2030, then increase its capabilities tenfold within the following three years. CEO Arvind Krishna has stated that quantum computing "is going to solve the kinds of problems AI could not do," signaling confidence in the technology's transformative potential.

IBM's position is strengthened by its partnerships with nearly 300 companies and government entities, including AMD and Vanguard, to develop quantum applications and hardware. The company was recently awarded a $1 billion federal investment to help construct the first purpose-built quantum chip foundry in the United States. This foundry could produce IBM's proprietary hardware while also supplying advanced quantum chips for the broader tech industry, positioning IBM as a potential infrastructure provider for the quantum era.

The global quantum computing market is currently valued at approximately $2 billion, with most revenue coming from research grants. By 2030, when IBM expects to deliver its large-scale system, the market is projected to reach $4 billion. However, beyond that point, growth could accelerate exponentially. Boston Consulting Group projects that quantum computing could become a $170 billion market by 2040, encompassing both hardware and software.

What Does the AI-Quantum Convergence Mean for Cybersecurity?

The broader implication of AI and quantum computing converging is that both are undermining a foundational assumption of the digital age: that encryption remains reliable for long periods. Security researchers argue that the future will require continuous adaptation rather than periodic upgrades.

Artificial intelligence is already becoming increasingly effective at identifying software vulnerabilities and implementation flaws in cryptographic systems. At the same time, developers are deploying AI defensively for code auditing, testing, and formal verification, mathematical techniques used to prove software behaves as intended. "AI can help with formal verification of post-quantum systems," Pruden noted, "that theoretically makes them more secure".

The result is a permanent security arms race. "Nothing is going to be as static as it's been in the future," Pruden warned. "Either a quantum computer comes online to break some fundamental assumption, or AI gets smart enough to break that assumption too".

For organizations and individuals, the message is clear: the window to prepare for quantum-resistant security is narrowing. The combination of AI acceleration and quantum development means that what was once considered a distant threat is now an urgent priority requiring immediate action across government, finance, and technology sectors.