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Given the direct quote “Since my professional goal is for someone to build a quantum computer, I think my resignation is the best course of action for everyone

Given the direct quote “Since my professional goal is for someone to build a quantum computer, I think my resignation is the best course of action for everyone,” The way I interpret this is that Quantum computing is just some pipe dream that Google isn’t taking seriously. This man intends to build a real device and either he doesn’t have faith Google will allow him to make one or has any intentions of making one. +1 for the Google Graveyard

move-on-by 6y ago
Marketing probably got involved, decided they should rebrand as a 'Quamtum' computer and just use standard compute. On a more serious note, I agree with your interpretation.
smitty1e 6y ago
I would not walk away thinking that Google is uninterested in the same goal. Rather, there were serious differences of opinion regarding the path to get there.
- stuff4ben 6y ago
  Exactly. They even mentioned it in the article. Two leads disagreeing on how to get work done is never a good thing no matter where you work if they can't get to consensus.
  - sq_ 6y ago
    Seems especially true for quantum computing. So many different, untested ways to get to the end goal, to the point where members of a group could all have perfectly valid reasoning as to why their particular method is the only one that will work.
    - ISL 6y ago
      In that case, if you have the resources, you find both.
      - CydeWeys 6y ago
        You may have the money, but not the talent. I can't imagine there are that many cutting edge quantum computing researchers out there. Talk about a niche field.
    - skapadia 6y ago
      LOL - isn't that the very nature of quantum computing itself? "A quantum computer works with particles that can be in superposition. Rather than representing bits — such particles would represent qubits, which can take on the value 0, or 1, or both simultaneously" (https://plus.maths.org/content/how-does-quantum-commuting-wo... https://plus.maths.org/content/how-does-quantum-commuting-wo...) "The principle of quantum superposition states that if a physical system may be in one of many configurations—arrangements of particles or fields—then the most general state is a combination of all of these possibilities, where the amount in each configuration is specified by a complex number." (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quantum_superposition https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quantum_superposition)
  - deleted 6y ago
    [deleted]
  - techslave 6y ago
    but this is quantum. you take both approaches.
noad 6y ago
That was my interpretation as well. The bizarre bit in the opening paragraph about Sundar saying that quantum computing will magically solve climate change is so baffling and stupid I'd probably want to quit after realizing that was my boss too. I once worked as a developer for a massive trillion dollar tech company, but the company was terribly dysfunctional and never did any real work, so when I quit I joked about how I was quitting to get into software development. Sounds like the same situation here.
- 2OEH8eoCRo0 6y ago
  >when I quit I joked about how I was quitting to get into software development I'm stealing that line.
  - swader999 6y ago
    Or, I just want to build something.
- ballenf 6y ago
  > Pichai said the milestone affirmed his belief that quantum computers might one day tackle problems like climate change Not sure why the quote is problematic. Is modeling complex systems not a good application of quantum compute? Or is the view that climate modeling is an already solved problem?
  - craftinator 6y ago
    I think the issue may lie in the logistics; can QC provide significantly better modeling (significantly in that it'll lead to significantly better outcomes) within a time frame to actually be useful? I, for one, haven't seen any QC system actually do any useful work, which is saying a lot for a multi-billion dollar "industry". It will likely be an incredibly useful technology by the end of my lifetime, but at the moment it is a marketing buzzword.
  - noad 6y ago
    That's sort of the point, everyone just wants to create a model to further their own personal career instead of actually working on the fucking problem. I guess they just assume everything in the world will automagically fix itself once we have enough qubits? It's either magical thinking or pure marketing department fiction, I cannot tell which.
frenchman99 6y ago
The sentence doesn't have any clear meaning. That's probably why it's brilliant: each and everyone of us can and will interpret it how they like due to confirmation bias [0]. [0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Confirmation_bias https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Confirmation_bias
sct202 6y ago
The article makes it sound more like a power struggle after Martinis got put in an advisory role which for executives is a polite way of firing someone who has done a good job.
kerng 6y ago
Only half joking... guy wa probably was asked for business plan and how this will increase ad sales.

move-on-by 6y ago

Marketing probably got involved, decided they should rebrand as a 'Quamtum' computer and just use standard compute. On a more serious note, I agree with your interpretation.

smitty1e 6y ago

I would not walk away thinking that Google is uninterested in the same goal. Rather, there were serious differences of opinion regarding the path to get there.

stuff4ben 6y ago
Exactly. They even mentioned it in the article. Two leads disagreeing on how to get work done is never a good thing no matter where you work if they can't get to consensus.
- sq_ 6y ago
  Seems especially true for quantum computing. So many different, untested ways to get to the end goal, to the point where members of a group could all have perfectly valid reasoning as to why their particular method is the only one that will work.
  - ISL 6y ago
    In that case, if you have the resources, you find both.
    - CydeWeys 6y ago
      You may have the money, but not the talent. I can't imagine there are that many cutting edge quantum computing researchers out there. Talk about a niche field.
  - skapadia 6y ago
    LOL - isn't that the very nature of quantum computing itself? "A quantum computer works with particles that can be in superposition. Rather than representing bits — such particles would represent qubits, which can take on the value 0, or 1, or both simultaneously" (https://plus.maths.org/content/how-does-quantum-commuting-wo... https://plus.maths.org/content/how-does-quantum-commuting-wo...) "The principle of quantum superposition states that if a physical system may be in one of many configurations—arrangements of particles or fields—then the most general state is a combination of all of these possibilities, where the amount in each configuration is specified by a complex number." (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quantum_superposition https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quantum_superposition)
- deleted 6y ago
  [deleted]
- techslave 6y ago
  but this is quantum. you take both approaches.

noad 6y ago

That was my interpretation as well. The bizarre bit in the opening paragraph about Sundar saying that quantum computing will magically solve climate change is so baffling and stupid I'd probably want to quit after realizing that was my boss too. I once worked as a developer for a massive trillion dollar tech company, but the company was terribly dysfunctional and never did any real work, so when I quit I joked about how I was quitting to get into software development. Sounds like the same situation here.

2OEH8eoCRo0 6y ago
>when I quit I joked about how I was quitting to get into software development I'm stealing that line.
- swader999 6y ago
  Or, I just want to build something.
ballenf 6y ago
> Pichai said the milestone affirmed his belief that quantum computers might one day tackle problems like climate change Not sure why the quote is problematic. Is modeling complex systems not a good application of quantum compute? Or is the view that climate modeling is an already solved problem?
- craftinator 6y ago
  I think the issue may lie in the logistics; can QC provide significantly better modeling (significantly in that it'll lead to significantly better outcomes) within a time frame to actually be useful? I, for one, haven't seen any QC system actually do any useful work, which is saying a lot for a multi-billion dollar "industry". It will likely be an incredibly useful technology by the end of my lifetime, but at the moment it is a marketing buzzword.
- noad 6y ago
  That's sort of the point, everyone just wants to create a model to further their own personal career instead of actually working on the fucking problem. I guess they just assume everything in the world will automagically fix itself once we have enough qubits? It's either magical thinking or pure marketing department fiction, I cannot tell which.

frenchman99 6y ago

The sentence doesn't have any clear meaning. That's probably why it's brilliant: each and everyone of us can and will interpret it how they like due to confirmation bias [0]. [0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Confirmation_bias https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Confirmation_bias

sct202 6y ago

The article makes it sound more like a power struggle after Martinis got put in an advisory role which for executives is a polite way of firing someone who has done a good job.

kerng 6y ago

Only half joking... guy wa probably was asked for business plan and how this will increase ad sales.