Bitcoin Takes Step Towards Quantum Fix as Experts Diverge on Urgency of Threat
Bitcoin developers have advanced efforts to address the potential threat of quantum computers by merging BIP 360 into the Bitcoin Improvement Proposals repository. BIP 360 introduces Pay-to-Merkle-Root (P2MR), a new output type that eliminates key-path spending—a mechanism that exposes public keys upon spending coins and is vulnerable to quantum attacks. This update lays the foundation for integrating post-quantum signature schemes with future network upgrades but does not activate any changes yet; it only formalizes the proposal for community review. The urgency stems from Shor’s algorithm, which could allow quantum computers to derive private keys from public keys, risking current cryptographic protections. Experts disagree on the timeline: Some predict fault-tolerant quantum computers within five to seven years; others suggest they're still decades away. Despite rapid progress in quantum research, precise predictions remain uncertain. Some security experts emphasize that community resistance to change may be a greater risk than quantum computing itself, as protocol consensus becomes harder over time. Nonetheless, Bitcoin developers aim to proactively mitigate existential risks, even as the threat level and timeline remain uncertain.
