AI & Tech
Physicist Says Tech Companies Overhyped Quantum Computing Before AI Actually Delivered
Shawn Ryan Show
#312 Sabrina Pasterski - Theoretical Physicist on the Hidden Code of the Universe
"Quantum computing is like way overhyped. And then suddenly AI actually is useful. You're like, holy shit. So I don't know where I should land in the end or what I should learn from the fact but like, yeah, completely disillusioned to like overly enthusiastic in a couple weeks."
Sabrina Pasterski, a leading theoretical physicist at Perimeter Institute, admitted she was deeply skeptical of tech hype around quantum computing and believed buzzword-driven projects were getting funded despite known physical impossibilities. Her disillusionment turned to enthusiasm only when AI coding tools like Claude proved genuinely useful for her own research, allowing her to build software prototypes without hiring dev teams.
From this episode
Shawn Ryan Show