# Microsoft's new quantum computer chip has a fundamental problem

_Friday, July 10, 2026 at 8:00 AM EDT · Science · Latest · Tier 2 — Notable_

![Microsoft's new quantum computer chip has a fundamental problem — Primary](https://static.scientificamerican.com/dam/asset/cd097491-167a-468a-8251-2870479c579d/Majorana-6-web-size_6.jpg?m=1780421148.675&w=1200)

Microsoft announced today that it has improved its quantum technology with a new chip named Majorana 2, but outside experts say the device does not work and the underlying approach has never been validated. The company claims the chip uses a topological approach based on Majorana quasiparticles in superconducting wires, which theoretically resists noise better than other quantum systems. Microsoft says the method could eventually scale to millions of qubits on a single chip. The claim is detailed in a new preprint manuscript that has not been peer-reviewed. The team replaced the aluminum superconductor used in the previous Majorana 1 chip with lead, which Microsoft says improves the qubit's longevity to 20 seconds to a minute. A company blog post stated this rapid progress allows Microsoft to accelerate its roadmap, targeting scalable practical quantum computing by 2029. Physicists including Henry Legg of the University of St. Andrews and Sergey Frolov of the University of Pittsburgh criticized the data as insufficient, noting it comes from a handful of instances on a single device. Legg said the result would not pass peer review for any other group. Frolov said Microsoft's last similar preprint has remained unpublished since last summer, suggesting rejection by top journals. Microsoft maintains it has demonstrated what scientists say it has not. Executive Vice President Jason Zander compared the effort to Bell Labs inventing the transistor without proving the electron existed.

## Sources

- [Scientific American](https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/microsofts-upgraded-majorana-quantum-computing-chip-fizzles-with-physicists/)

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