IonQ CEO Warns Quantum Computers Will Hack Bitcoin by 2028

Niccolo de Masi, CEO of IonQ (NYSE:IONQ), has stated that quantum computers will be able to hack Bitcoin's encryption by 2028. According to him, a 2,000-qubit machine could run an elliptic-curve encryption attack in under 26 days.

This timeline is sooner than most investors expected, with de Masi previously stating that the estimated number of qubits needed to break encryption has dropped by four orders of magnitude over the past 15 years.

IonQ is accelerating its path to 10,000 qubits in 2027 and planning to begin commissioning 256-qubit systems in 2027. De Masi also launched a QKD product called ClavisXG Multiplex aimed at protecting existing fiber networks.