📈 #22 Part I - The OR revolution: the promise of Quantum Computing

The future of optimization starts now.

Happy New Year! 🎉

I truly hope you had a wonderful time with family and friends during these days.

It's important to disconnect, which is why I haven't written to you in a while. I spent a few days between Alicante and Elche, and honestly, it was fantastic for me.

So here I am again to give you a dose of content on Operations Research.

One thing I've noticed lately is a renewed interest in applying Operations Research techniques in many businesses. Two main reasons drive this interest: Quantum Computing and AI.

I wanted to explain why I see it this way in as much detail as possible, and it turned out to be quite a long read. I didn't want you to block out half an hour, so I've divided it into three different parts. In this first part, I'll tell you everything related to Quantum Computing from the Operations Research perspective:

• The need for quantum computers

• The existence of more efficient quantum algorithms than classical ones

• How the scientific community and private companies share a common goal

The second part of this trilogy will focus on the connection between Artificial Intelligence and Operations Research, while in the third and final part, I'll share my visions and conclusions regarding the first two parts.

Let's go for it!

In 1965, Gordon E. Moore - co-founder of Intel, one of the most important microprocessor companies in the world, if not the most important - established a law stating that the number of transistors on microprocessors would double every 2 years. It's something he observed himself, and it's an empirical law that has been proven in practice since then.

Since the size of microprocessors has remained constant or even become smaller, for this law to hold, transistors must become smaller and smaller.

Quick pause: let's remember that a transistor is the basic building block of modern electronics for performing calculations. We usually see that the thing has a head with three legs: