#quantum 🔐
$BTC is preparing for the era of quantum computers: the first post-quantum network has been launched
While scientists are still debating when exactly quantum computing will be able to break traditional cryptography, BTQ Technologies has already moved from theory to practice. Bitcoin Quantum testnet v0.3.0 has been launched — the first working implementation of the BIP 360 standard.
💻 What's the problem?
Modern Bitcoin is based on algorithms (ECDSA/Schnorr), which are vulnerable to Shor's algorithm. A powerful quantum computer can theoretically calculate your private key from your public key in a matter of minutes.
• At risk: about 25-35% of all coins in old addresses (P2PK) and wallets where the public key was already "shining" on the network.
• Forecast: A 256-bit curve crack could become a reality in the 2027–2033 window.
🛡 How does BIP 360 protect?
The BTQ solution introduces a new type of output — Pay-to-Merkle-Root (P2MR):
1. Instead of a public key, only the root of the Merkle tree is recorded in the blockchain.
2. Post-quantum Dilithium signatures (NIST standard) are used.
3. Even a quantum computer will not be able to obtain useful data for an attack from such a record.
📊 Current status of the project:
• Scale: 50+ miners, 100,000+ blocks mined in the testnet.
• Functionality: Full access via CLI, support for smart contracts and multisigs.
• But: This is a fork, not an update to the main network. Bitcoin Core is in no hurry to implement BIP 360 (the history with SegWit and Taproot lasted 7-8 years).
🧐 Should we panic?
Currently, the threat is more theoretical. A real hack would require about 2,330 logical qubits, while current machines only have about 100. ARK Invest estimates that the tipping point won’t come until the mid-2030s.
However, as technology becomes cheaper and BTC price increases, building a quantum-proof infrastructure today is a game of chance that could save billions of dollars in the future.