For a long time, major scientific advances seemed reserved for public laboratories and prestigious universities. But certain technological giants, with colossal resources and direct access to the best global talents, are disrupting this balance. Among them, one actor has discreetly established himself in the field of fundamental research, reaching the highest distinctions. The awarding of a Nobel Prize to Google is not a simple media stunt, but the symptom of a profound transformation of the role that these companies now play in the production of scientific knowledge.
The experience doesn't end there. Not only does the system go from a voltage-free state to a quantum state detectable by a potential difference, but it also demonstrates the quantification of energy. This behavior predicted by quantum mechanics becomes observable on a scale much larger than that of isolated particles. Recognition will come forty years later. The 2025 Nobel rewards this work which has opened the way to concrete applications in cryptography, quantum sensors, and of course, in the construction of quantum computers.
When the Nobel Prize at Google becomes a strategic lever
In this scientific evolution, the place taken by Google seems almost obvious. The company, well beyond its search engine, funds research in AI, robotics, computational biology and autonomous mobility. Since 2013, it has also led a project dedicated to quantum under the name Google Quantum AI. After 2020, Michel Devoret, then at Yale, joined John Martinis to lead the hardware component. It is in this context that the 2025 Nobel Prize rewards two researchers who have worked in the company's laboratories, embodying Google's turn towards academic excellence.
In just two years, five employees linked to Google have been awarded a Nobel Prize. In 2024, three researchers affiliated with the company receive top honors in chemistry and physics. Geoffrey Hinton is praised for his work in machine learning. At the same time, Demis Hassabis and John Jumper are distinguished for protein modeling using artificial intelligence. This rapid recognition is not due to chance. It reflects a clear strategy. That of attracting the best talents to extend its influence well beyond the market, even into fundamental research.
Numerama points out that these five awards illustrate the transformation of a technological giant into a central player in disruptive research. The researchers concerned do not all work in Google's internal teams, but the company offered them a framework, resources and scientific freedom rare in the industry.
What this breakthrough promises for tomorrow’s technologies
Observing quantum tunneling on a macroscopic scale is not just a conceptual feat. It serves as the foundation for a new generation of computers capable of manipulating stable qubits, essential for quantum computing. By using superconducting circuits, these devices become programmable, reproducible and, above all, integrable on chips. It is precisely this approach that Google chose to build its experimental machines, culminating in the announcement in 2019 of quantum supremacy, when a calculation was carried out faster than by any classical supercomputer.
Le Figaro points out that Michel Devoret, now based in Santa Barbara, is now focused on stabilizing qubits by developing robust error correction methods. It is no longer simply a question of proving that quantum works, but of making it industrially viable. In 2024, Google Quantum AI presents an effective correction system, making it possible to consider increasing the number of qubits without losing precision. The dream of a universal quantum computer is starting to emerge from the laboratory.
The ambitions continue. John Martinis, in an interview with Forbes, evokes a progressive development plan towards machines composed of hundreds, even millions of qubits, with the clear objective of crossing the threshold of useful calculation, that which solves problems impossible to treat with classical computers.
