Season 1, Episode 54 · From First Principles
How Quantum Computing Actually Works (Part 1) (EP 54)
20 Aug 2026 · 2 hr 11 min
Episode notes
Quantum computers do not simply “try every answer at once.” So what do they actually do—and why have governments and technology companies spent billions trying to build them? In Part 1 of our two-part quantum computing deep dive, Lester Nare and Krishna Choudhary build the field from first principles. The series was prompted by a new Nature cover paper, A digitally controlled silicon quantum processing unit , co-authored by Krishna and members of the HRL Quantum Team and collaborators. Before getting into that hardware in Part 2, we first need to understand why anyone wanted to build a…
From First Principles
by Krishna Choudhary and Lester Nare · English · Tech & Science
From First Principles is a fast, funny, and rigorous breakdown of the biggest science stories of the week, hosted by Lester Nare and physicist Krishna Choudhary, PhD. We go past headlines into the actual mechanics: what happened, why it matters, and what everyone’s missing. Expect physics, space, A
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