11: Chapter 11 Global Live Broadcast of the Federation "Athena"
The lights of Star City receded rapidly outside the porthole, eventually fading into a blurred halo on the horizon, blending into the deep night.
The Gulfstream G650 business jet flew steadily at an altitude of ten thousand meters; the cabin was unusually quiet, with only the low, constant hum of the engines.
Lin Shen leaned back in the spacious leather seat, covered by a soft, thin blanket.
After the thrilling 'Technology Highlight Challenge' at the IOPC summit and the subsequent days of intensive and cautious academic exchanges and social engagements, even his well-recovered body felt a deep sense of exhaustion.
But at this moment, his brain was unusually clear, and he felt no sleepiness at all.
Sitting opposite him was a special representative from the Chasing Light project headquarters, a Director surnamed Han.
Director Han was around fifty years old, with an elegant temperament but sharp eyes; he was currently reviewing a briefing just received through an encrypted channel by the light of a reading lamp.
Sun Qiming and Engineer Wu, who was responsible for the on-site demonstration, sat a little further away, whispering about the subsequent sample handover and reporting matters.
'This 'Light Prism' operation was completed excellently.' Director Han put down his tablet and looked at Lin Shen, his face wearing a gentle but official smile. 'Not only did it powerfully counter unfounded skepticism, but it also demonstrated our country's solid progress and open attitude in the field of silicon-based photonic integration to the international academic community. Both the headquarters and the higher leadership have given your work high praise.'
Lin Shen nodded slightly: 'This is the result of the team's collective effort.'
'Hmm.' Director Han nodded. 'However, the tree wants to be quiet, but the wind does not cease. You have attracted too much attention in Star City; follow-ups, cooperation invitations, and even... deeper probings will follow one after another. The headquarters has decided that after you return to the country, you will need a period of 'silent period' and a summary and improvement phase. Comrade Lin Shen, you and your core team will temporarily step away from public academic exchange activities in the near future to focus on deepening research, especially on the key direction of 'on-chip light source and modulator integration' that you mentioned. Relevant security and confidentiality levels will also be raised accordingly.'
This meant more resources, but also less freedom and greater pressure.
Lin Shen had long expected this: 'I understand, Director Han. We will definitely seize the time and strive to make new breakthroughs as soon as possible.'
'Very good.' Director Han smiled with satisfaction and changed the subject. 'In addition, Academician Qin asked me to tell you not to be complacent because of the current achievements. The road for photonic chips is long; we have only taken the first step. The landscape of international technological competition changes in an instant. Always pay attention to progress in other directions, especially... fields that may bring about paradigm shifts.'
His tone carried an imperceptible gravity.
Lin Shen's heart stirred, and just as he wanted to ask for details, the public address system in the cabin suddenly sounded, indicating that the plane was about to enter the airspace of the Dragon Kingdom and broadcasting some entry precautions.
Just in the gap when the broadcast ended, Sun Qiming suddenly pointed to the small screen of a portable satellite terminal in front of him and exclaimed in a low voice: 'Director Han, Engineer Lin, look at this!'
On the screen, a global live press conference of obviously extremely high specifications was being broadcast.
The background was a Deep Blue hall with a strong sense of the future, and in the center floated a holographic model of a complex polyhedron structure emitting a soft white light; above the model was the name of the ancient Greek goddess of wisdom—'athena'.
The speaker at the press conference was a joint representative from the Federal Department of Energy and the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), a middle-aged official with meticulously groomed hair and eyes revealing strong confidence.
'...Today, we stand on the threshold of a new era of computational science!' The official's voice, through the simultaneous interpretation system, clearly entered Lin Shen's ears. 'After ten years of secret research and development and joint efforts, the next-generation quantum computer prototype—'athena' (athena), created jointly by the federal government-led initiative, top domestic universities, national laboratories, and technology enterprises, is officially unveiled!'
The screen switched, showing a massive cabinet full of precision pipes and cooling devices, as well as a complex console.
'athena' adopted the latest hybrid architecture of ion traps and superconducting qubits, claiming to possess 512 logical qubits, a Quantum Volume reaching an astonishing 2^15 (32768), and achieving 99.95% single-qubit gate fidelity and 99.8% two-qubit gate fidelity.
These parameters, even for Lin Shen, who did not have a deep understanding of quantum computing, could feel their weight.
This had far surpassed any quantum computer prototype previously publicly reported in the international academic community!
'After rigorous internal testing,' the official continued to announce with a smile of controlling everything, ''athena' has achieved exponential acceleration advantages over any known classical supercomputer in multiple key benchmarks such as 'random circuit sampling', 'quantum chemistry simulation', and 'combinatorial optimization problem solving'. We officially declare that the federation has achieved 'Quantum Supremacy'!'
'Quantum Supremacy'! This term exploded in the cabin like a thunderclap.
Sun Qiming and Engineer Wu's faces changed drastically. Director Han's brows locked tightly, his fingers tapping the seat armrest unconsciously.
In the live broadcast, the large screen behind the official began to scroll and display the 'milestone' achievements made by 'athena': successfully simulating the electronic structure of a certain complex drug molecule, with a speed a million times faster than a classical computer; solving a logistics network optimal path problem that would require a top supercomputer to run for months in just a few minutes; and even demonstrating a prototype for cracking a public key encryption algorithm once considered secure for the next hundred years...
Every demonstration was like a heavy hammer striking the hearts of the viewers.
The comment section of the live broadcast (although filtered) and the global major technology media broadcasting simultaneously were instantly submerged by waves of exclamation, cheering, and anxiety.
'This is not just a faster computer!' The official spread his arms, his voice full of infectious power. ''athena' represents a brand-new computational paradigm; it will reshape materials science, drug research and development, artificial intelligence, financial modeling, cryptographic security... and even the fundamental way we understand the universe! The federation will, as always, lead this great technological revolution! We call on global research institutions and the industry to join us in the bright future of the quantum era under the standards and frameworks set by the federation!'
The screen finally froze on the holographic model of 'athena' emitting a mysterious luster, and a striking slogan: The Future is Quantum. The Future is HERE.
The live broadcast ended. The cabin fell into dead silence. Only the roar of the engines seemed to become heavier.
Director Han was silent for a moment, then spoke slowly, his voice a bit hoarse: 'They chose to release it at this time... it is truly 'just right'.'
Yes, just right. Just when the Dragon Kingdom had just made its voice heard in the field of photonic integration, attempting to secure a place in the next-generation computing race, the federation used a quantum computer prototype that could be called a 'monster,' in the name of 'Quantum Supremacy,' to once again declare its absolute leading position in the most cutting-edge and core fundamental computing power, attempting to pull everyone's attention back to the Orbit they set, and firmly grasp the dominance of rule-making.
This was a naked technological deterrence and strategic suppression.
'Ion trap and superconducting hybrid architecture... 512 logical qubits...' Sun Qiming muttered, 'How did they do it? The problems of error correction and coherence time, how did they solve them?'
'That is not important.' Director Han waved his hand, his eyes returning to a cold, stern look. 'What's important is that they did it, and made it public. This will have a profound impact on us and the global technological competition landscape. We must immediately assess its authenticity and potential threats. I'm afraid the headquarters will have to hold a meeting overnight.'
He looked at Lin Shen: 'Comrade Lin Shen, it seems Academician Qin's reminder was correct. The challenge we face is far more than just the front line of photonic chips. Quantum computing is a 'hegemony' struggle of another dimension, more fundamental. Our 'Chasing Light' project, I'm afraid, will have to adjust its pace, or even consider a new layout.'
Lin Shen's gaze, however, involuntarily turned to the pitch-black night sky outside the porthole, and further away, the faintly visible lights of the coastline belonging to his motherland.
Deep in his consciousness, the rooted technology tree seemed to have sensed his violently fluctuating emotions and the huge information impact coming from the outside world.
He, whose attention was originally mostly focused on the [Photonic Chip] branch of the [Information and Computing] trunk, now clearly 'saw' that on the same [Information and Computing] main trunk, not far from the [Photonic Chip] node in another direction, a node originally dim and marked as [Quantum Computing Theory], the gray 'lock' phantom on its surface was trembling slightly, emitting an indescribable, cold attraction.
And deeper within that node, there seemed to be more complex branches regarding different technical paths (superconducting, ion trap, topological, photonic quantum, etc.), as well as a sub-goal marked as [Quantum Supremacy Verification and Transcendence].
Photons and quanta, two seemingly different paths, constituted competition at the most fundamental level of basic computing power, and might also intersect in the future.
The federation's 'athena,' like a towering snow-capped mountain suddenly lying across the road ahead, exuded biting cold and a sense of oppression.
But in Lin Shen's heart, besides the initial shock and heaviness, a stronger, almost instinctive desire for challenge and exploration also began to quietly sprout.
Quantum Supremacy? 512 logical qubits achieved with a hybrid architecture?
His consciousness gently brushed over the trembling [Quantum Computing Theory] node on the technology tree, and a line of prompt information that only he could see emerged:
[Detected external strong correlation technology event impact... Node correlation increased... Pre-requisite knowledge retrieval in progress... Host possesses basic quantum mechanics and solid-state physics cognition... Deduction environment requirement assessment...]
The technology tree had reacted to the 'quantum' direction.
The plane began to descend, preparing to land. Below, the brilliant sea of lights of the capital was clearly visible, like a huge, vibrant web of light.
There were countless people fighting there, teams that had just gained a little confidence in the photonic field, and national forces that would surely be shaken by the 'athena' news and react quickly.
Lin Shen withdrew his gaze and looked at Director Han, his eyes having returned to calmness, but deep inside, it seemed as if a new flame had been ignited.
'Director Han, I request that during the 'silent period', in addition to continuing to advance photonic integration research, I also be allowed to access and study all non-classified and accessible internal materials regarding quantum computing, especially its underlying physics, materials, and engineering bottlenecks.'
Director Han looked at him with some surprise, then immediately understood something, a flash of approval and deeper expectation in his eyes: 'Yes. In the 'Star Sea' knowledge base, there is a dedicated quantum technology section; although there isn't much core progress, the basic theory and international dynamics are complete. Whatever you need, apply directly through the 'firefly' channel. However,' he emphasized his tone, 'your primary task is still the photonic chip direction; that is the point where we are most likely to quickly form combat capability. The quantum field is very deep; we need to figure out the situation first, then plan before acting.'
'I understand.' Lin Shen nodded. He certainly knew the priorities. But the appearance of 'athena' was like a loud bugle, announcing that a more grand and cruel era of technological hegemony had fully arrived. He could not only look down at the path of photons at his feet, but also had to look up and gaze at the sea of clouds surging with thunder that was quantum.
The plane landed steadily and taxied on the runway. The cabin door opened, and the cool night breeze of early summer, mixed with the familiar air, poured in.
Lin Shen stepped onto the land of his motherland and took a deep breath. The hustle and bustle and edge of Star City seemed to remain behind, and ahead lay the huge shadow cast by 'athena,' and beneath that shadow, a more magnificent journey that must be pursued with all efforts.
Photons have just bloomed, and quanta have arrived.
The prologue of the second volume was grandly opened amidst the sound of the global broadcast of the federation declaring 'hegemony'.