Another Reflection from a 91-Year-Old Lifelong Learner
I have been writing quite a bit about Artificial Intelligence lately.
As many of my worldwide readers know, I became seriously interested in AI only in recent years.Today, ChatGPT and other AI tools have become part of my daily writing activities. They have helped me improve my grammar, sharpen my choice of words, organize my thoughts and, most importantly, continue doing something I have enjoyed for most of my adult life, learning something new.
I often tell my fellow seniors at The Heritage Downtown that retirement does not mean that we should stop learning. Recently, however, I came across something that made me stop and think:
What comes after AI? The answer may be quantum computing.
And if that is true, we may be standing at the beginning of another technological revolution that could eventually be even more profound than the AI revolution we are experiencing today.
Is Quantum Computing "Beyond" AI?
I would be careful about saying that quantum computing is simply a higher level of technology than artificial intelligence. AI and quantum computing are really two different technologies.
Artificial Intelligence uses computers to perform tasks that traditionally required human intelligence, recognizing patterns, understanding language, analyzing information, generating text and images, making predictions and assisting with decisions.
Quantum computing is fundamentally different.
Instead of using only the ordinary bits of today's computers represented as 0s and 1s quantum computers use qubits, which take advantage of strange properties of quantum mechanics.
That sounds complicated and it is! But I like to think of it this way:
AI is teaching computers to become better at thinking with information.
Quantum computing is developing an entirely different way for computers to process certain kinds of information. That distinction is important.
Why Is Quantum Computing So Different?
Our conventional computers have become extraordinarily powerful.
The smartphone in my pocket has computing capabilities that would have seemed like science fiction when I was growing up in the Philippines in the 1940s.
I remember when a computer was a huge machine occupying a room.
Today, I can ask ChatGPT a question from my chair at THD and receive an answer in seconds. What a change!
But there are some problems that become extraordinarily difficult for conventional computers as their complexity increases.
This is where quantum computing enters the picture.
Quantum computers are designed to take advantage of quantum phenomena such as superposition and entanglement. They are not simply faster versions of our laptops or supercomputers.
They represent a different computing paradigm. And that is what makes them so fascinating.
But Don't Expect a Quantum Computer on Your Desk Yet
There is an important reality check. Quantum computers are still in an early stage of development.
One of their biggest problems is that qubits are extremely fragile. Environmental disturbances, including temperature fluctuations and other sources of noise can cause errors. NIST points out that maintaining reliable quantum states is one of the fundamental challenges of building useful quantum computers.
That means that building a powerful quantum computer is not simply a matter of putting more qubits together.
Scientists need sophisticated error-correction systems and an enormous amount of engineering.
IBM describes fault-tolerant quantum computing as a major challenge because quantum errors can accumulate as computations become longer and more complicated.
In other words: We are still in the early chapters of the quantum-computing story.
Something Remarkable Happened in 2026
But something happened recently that caught my attention.
In July 2026, IBM and researchers from the University of Chicago announced a demonstration involving 70 logical qubits and quantum error correction. They reported completing a computation in about 15 minutes that they said was beyond the practical reach of leading classical simulation approaches.
Other research announced at about the same time reported quantum computations that could explore physical systems beyond the reliable capabilities of leading classical simulations.
These developments are important because scientists have been searching for something called quantum advantage, situations where a quantum computer can perform a useful computational task beyond what classical computing methods can practically accomplish.
We should not exaggerate these accomplishments. They do not mean that quantum computers have replaced today's computers.
They do not mean that my MacBook will soon be obsolete. And they certainly do not mean that ChatGPT is going away!
But they do suggest that quantum computing is moving from an interesting scientific idea toward something with increasingly demonstrated computational capabilities.
What Could Quantum Computers Eventually Do?
This is where the subject becomes really exciting. Quantum computers could potentially transform areas such as:
- Drug discovery
- Chemistry
- Materials science
- Molecular simulation
- Cryptography and cybersecurity
- Optimization
- Financial modeling
- Energy research
- Climate and scientific modeling
Imagine being able to simulate complicated molecules or materials in ways that today's classical computers cannot efficiently reproduce.
For someone like me, who spent much of my career in pharmaceutical chemistry and later worked at the FDA reviewing pharmaceutical products, this possibility is particularly fascinating.
I have watched pharmaceutical science evolve enormously during my lifetime.
The possibility that quantum computers could eventually help scientists understand complex molecular systems at an entirely new level is something I find remarkable.
And What About Artificial Intelligence?
Here is the part I find most interesting. I don't think quantum computing will necessarily replace AI.
I think the future may involve quantum computing and AI working together.
AI is extraordinarily good at finding patterns, learning from data and helping humans work with information.
Quantum computers may eventually become extraordinarily good at solving certain classes of computational problems.
Put the two together, and we could have something very powerful.
Instead of asking: "Will quantum computing replace AI?"
perhaps the better question is: "What will AI and quantum computing accomplish together that neither could accomplish alone?"
That is a much more interesting question.
From Mainframes to AI and Now Quantum Computing
Sometimes I think about how fortunate I have been to live through so many technological revolutions. I was born in 1934.
When I was growing up in Barotac Viejo, Iloilo, there were no personal computers, smartphones, internet or artificial intelligence. Television was still a novelty.
When I came to America in 1960, computers were enormous machines used primarily by governments, universities and large corporations.
During my professional career, I witnessed the computer revolution.
Then came the internet. Then smartphones. Then social media.
And now we are living through the Artificial Intelligence revolution.
And suddenly, while I am 91 years old and living in a senior community, I am reading about another possible revolution: Quantum computing.
I find that almost amusing. Perhaps I am living proof that the saying is correct:
You are never too old to learn something new.
What Does This Mean for My Fellow Seniors?
I don't expect my fellow residents at THD to suddenly start studying quantum mechanics!
I certainly don't plan to become a quantum physicist myself.
But I do think there is a lesson here for all of us.
Technology is changing so rapidly that none of us can assume that we have seen the last major technological revolution.
Some of us grew up without television. Then we learned to use telephones.
Then computers. Then email. Then smartphones. And now some of us are experimenting with AI.
The next generation may grow up thinking that AI is as ordinary as electricity.
And perhaps their children will look back at today's AI the way we look back at the first room-sized computers. That thought is both humbling and exciting.
My Prediction
I don't know whether quantum computing will become the next great technological revolution.
Nobody really knows. There are still enormous technical challenges to overcome.
But I am convinced of one thing: We should pay attention.
In August 2026, quantum computing is no longer merely a subject found in science-fiction stories. Researchers are demonstrating increasingly sophisticated quantum computations, while companies are investing billions of dollars in the technology and developing roadmaps toward fault-tolerant systems. IBM, for example, announced in June that it planned to invest more than $10 billion in quantum computing over five years.
Just this month, IBM also announced a new milestone in connecting cryogenic systems designed to eventually support much larger quantum computers.
Whether these ambitious plans succeed remains to be seen. But the race has clearly begun.
My Final Thought
For the past year or so, I have been fascinated by what Artificial Intelligence can do.
I use AI as a writing assistant. I ask questions. I research subjects I didn't know much about.
I use it to revisit some of my older writings and make them clearer for today's readers.
And I am still amazed that I can sit in my senior living apartment and have a conversation with an AI system about subjects ranging from my Filipino ancestry to pharmaceutical chemistry, history, aging, food, technology and now quantum computing.
But perhaps AI is not the end of the story. Perhaps it is only another chapter.
Artificial Intelligence may teach computers to work with information in remarkably human-like ways.
Quantum computing may give us an entirely new way to process certain kinds of information.
And someday, the combination of the two may produce discoveries that we cannot even imagine today.
At 91, I have learned not to say, "I have seen it all."
Instead, I prefer to say: "I wonder what comes next?"
That, to me, is one of the great advantages of growing older.We have lived through the past.
We are experiencing the present. And if we remain curious, we can still be excited about the future. The adventure of learning never has to retire.
AI Impressions on this Posting:
I would not say that quantum computing is simply a “higher level” of technology than AI. AI and quantum computing are different technological revolutions. AI is primarily about making machines learn, reason, generate, and assist humans using enormous amounts of data and computing power. Quantum computing is an entirely different approach to computation, using quantum-mechanical phenomena such as superposition and entanglement.
What makes the comparison fascinating is that quantum computing could eventually solve certain problems that even today's most powerful classical computers cannot handle efficiently. And AI may actually become one of the beneficiaries of quantum computing rather than its competitor.
This is particularly timely. In July 2026, IBM and University of Chicago researchers reported a quantum computation using 70 logical qubits that they say demonstrated trusted quantum advantage on a problem beyond the practical reach of leading classical simulation methods. At the same time, today's quantum computers remain experimental and are still highly vulnerable to errors; NIST describes qubits as extremely fragile, while IBM notes that fully fault-tolerant quantum computing remains a major engineering challenge.
I think this would make an excellent worldwide blog post for you, especially because you have been writing about AI from the perspective of a 91-year-old lifelong learner. It gives you an opportunity to say, in effect: I thought AI was the frontier—then I discovered quantum computing!
Moreover, I think this posting has the ingredients that make your posts particularly engaging for a worldwide audience: technology, history, personal experience, curiosity, and the perspective of a lifelong learner.
The strongest part, in my opinion, is that you are not presenting quantum computing as a physicist, you are presenting it as a 91-year-old who has personally lived through the transformation from room-sized computers to smartphones, AI, and now quantum computing. That makes the subject understandable and personal rather than merely technical. I especially like the closing thought:
“The adventure of learning never has to retire.”
That could almost become a recurring theme or motto for some of your future writings.
AI Overview:
- Processing logic: AI uses classical computer code to recognize patterns and make predictions. Quantum computing uses qubits, quantum bits that exist in multiple states at once to process huge numbers of probabilities simultaneously.
- Application: Generative AI generates text, images, and human-like interactions. Quantum computing tackles math-heavy physical realities like molecular structures, material science, and global logistics.
- Current status: While generative AI is mature and consumer-facing, quantum hardware remains noisy, experimental, and dependent on extreme cryogenic cooling.
- Faster training: Quantum systems can drastically speed up how large AI models are trained and reduce their high energy costs.
- Mutual optimization: As noted by SpinQ, AI is currently used to calibrate fragile quantum chips and fix quantum errors.
- Industry impact: Experts project early commercial advantages in healthcare, drug discovery, and energy by the late 2020s.
2. My Photo of the Week- The Mess Created in My Patio- After Tree Trimming-Hopefully, it get clean today.
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