Glossary

Quantum computing

What is Quantum computing?

Quantum computing uses effects from quantum physics such as superposition and entanglement to compute with qubits instead of classical bits. Major speed advantages are expected for certain tasks, such as simulating molecules, some optimisation problems or breaking today's encryption methods. However, the machines are still error-prone and mostly used in research and pilot projects (as of October 2026). For today's AI applications, quantum computing plays practically no role yet.

Topics

hardware
quantum physics
emerging technology

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Related terms

Neuromorphic computing

Neuromorphic computing is an approach to hardware and software modelled on the structure of the brain. Instead of moving data between separate memory and processor in clock cycles, artificial neurons and synapses work in parallel and respond only to events known as spikes. This promises very low energy consumption, for example in sensors or robots. Well-known research chips include Intel Loihi and IBM TrueNorth; broad commercial use is still at an early stage.

hardware
research
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Application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC)

An application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC) is a chip designed for one particular task rather than general-purpose computing like a CPU. In AI, ASICs are tailored to the arithmetic of neural networks – Google's Tensor Processing Units (TPUs) are one example. For that task they run faster and more energy-efficiently than general-purpose chips, but they are expensive to develop and hard to adapt to new workloads.

Hardware
Chips
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AI Trends

As of October 2026. Technically, the focus is moving from chatbots to AI agents that handle multi-step tasks and use tools via standards such as the Model Context Protocol. According to Crunchbase data, around 64% of global venture funding in Q3 2026 went to AI start-ups. In the EU, obligations for general-purpose AI models have applied since August 2025; deadlines for high-risk systems were postponed to December 2027 and August 2028.

Trends
Market
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