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A quantum computation collective often called a Project Eleven has invited the worldwide cryptography community to a public glove and offers the primary team a reward for a Bitcoin that may interrupt a intentionally dilapidated version of Bitcoin's Elliptic Courve cryptography before April 5, 2026.
The group announced what the “Q -day price” described on X, and wrote: “We just began the Q -Day Prize. 1 BTC to the primary team to interrupt a toy version of Bitcoin's Cryptography using a quantum computer. Deadline: April 5, 2026. -Sökosystem hovered: The possible arrival of error -corrected quantum hardware, which is in a position to perform the SHOR -algorithm against real -time key.
Project Eleven doesn’t ask the participants to destroy the 256 -bit curve from Bitcoin directly. Instead, the teams should exhibit the SHOR algorithm against elliptical keys, that are sufficient from one to twenty -five bit – referred to the explosive of skilled cryptographers, but nevertheless the order of magnitude on what was publicly achieved for physical quantum processors, referred to about publicly suitable magnitude. The organizers argue that even a 3 -bit break could be “big news”, as this could provide the primary quantitatively verifiable yardstick for quantum progress on the elliptic -scurve discrete -log problem (ECDLP). In her words: “Nobody has rated this threat strictly.”
In order to qualify, a submission of code -level code or explicit instructions that may be carried out on the actual quantum hardware must contain, in addition to a narrative of the methods used, the managed errors and the mandatory classic post -processing. Hybrid attacks that depend on classic links should not approved. All entries are published, a call that grants the groups as an exercise in radical transparency: “Instead of waiting for breakthroughs behind closed doors, we imagine that we’re putting this challenge in a transparent and strict way.”
Why 1 Bitcoin – and why now?
The security of Bitcoin is ultimately based on the hardness of the discrete logarithm problem via the SecP256K1 curve. While classic attacks scalate exponentially, Peter Shor's quantum algorithm in 1994 could in principle solve the issue in polynome period and only collapse the prices from cosmic to gigantic. Current research estimates that within the order of two thousand fully error -corrected logical qubits – perhaps tens of millions of physical quBITs are supported – to threaten a 256 -bit key. Companies corresponding to Google, IBM, Ionq and Newcomer Quera race for the 4 -story logical quit threshold, although no person has publicly demonstrated anything near this ability.
Project Eleven says that his price is lower than bounty and greater than diagnosis. More than ten million Bitcoin addresses that last over six million coins have already exposed their public keys through previous expenditure activities. If quantum technology exceeds the critical threshold before these coins are migrated to the quantum in addresses, the funds could be liable to immediate theft. “Quantum computing continues steadily,” warns the group. “If that happens, we want to know.”
The initiative finally ends up in the midst of a flood of quantum -resilient suggestions inside the wider Bitcoin ecosystem. At the start of this month, a bunch of developers submitted the quantum -resistant address migration protocol (Qramp), a proposal for Bitcoin improvements that may orchestrate a network -wide change to key formats after the quantum. Since Qramp would require a consensus -broken fork, his political prospects remain uncertain.
Regardless of this, the Canadian Startup BTQ has described an exotic proof work alternative, which known as coarse -grained Boson sample and the today's Hash -Base -Base -Ratssel replaced by photo deactivation that was carried out on quantum hardware. Like Qramp, the concept of BTQ demands a tough fork and still needs to be supported broadly.
From a technical standpoint, the execution of a five -Bit -Elliptic -liptical version of the SHOR -ALGORITHMUS is brutally irreconcilable: quBITs with loyalty over 99.9 %, coherent for a whole lot of microseconds and orchestrated by deep circuits that were required within the 1000’s of two -Quitsch gites. Error correction -Ooverhead further improves the technical burden, which suggests that the contenders probably should use logical qubits and impressive compilation techniques as a way to keep the noise under control.
However, the worth for the F&E teams of the university laboratories and company -f & e teams can prove to be irresistible as a way to exhibit the sensible quantum advantage. Cloud -Accessable devices from the Quantum System Two of IBM, Quantinuum H -Sseries and OQC -Superconding platforms already enable a limited, pay -per -per -per access to dozens -or within the event of a whole lot -of physical quels. It stays to be seen whether considered one of these machines can maintain the required circuit.
Both results provide invaluable data. In the words of Project Elevens Start -Tweet, the goal is robust: “Break the biggest ECC key with Shors Algorithm. The reward: 1 BTC + go into cryptography history.”
At the time of the press, BTC was traded with $ 84,771.
BTC stays below the 200-day ema chart | Source: Btcusdt on tradingview.com
Selected picture with dall.e, diagram created by tradingview.com
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