The Quantum Kid

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Can a 9-year-old help decode the future of quantum tech? In this unique podcast, Kai — aka The Quantum Kid — teams up with his mom to ask bold questions that challenge a quantum expert and a business leader in every episode. Each 20-minute show makes cutting-edge ideas fun, clear, and surprisingly useful. Smart, curious minds of any age welcome.

Episodes

  1. JAN 22

    3 Big Wows! Quantum Computing, New Drugs, and a 3D-Printed Human Ear!

    Do leave comments, like and subscribe! Would you like to print a new ear? How about a new heart? In this episode of The Quantum Kid, 9-year-old Kai goes somewhere very few kids ever get to go: a real bioprinting lab at ETH Zurich. With the help of a researcher, Kai 3D-prints a mini human ear 🦻 made from living cells — and learns how scientists use printed tissue to study the body and test new medicines. Back in the studio, Kai has a fascinating discussion about another big “wow” in science: the use of quantum computing for drug discovery. He chats with two quantum experts: Pedram Roushan — Quantum Physicist at Google Quantum AISabrina Maniscalco — Professor of Quantum Information Science and Co-Founder and CEO of Algorithmiq They explain how quantum computers are different from regular computers, and why they could help scientists discover new drugs by understanding molecules in much more detail. To help Kai and the viewers understand quantum, we use analogies like LEGO bricks with mini brains 🧱🧠 — tiny building blocks that can explore lots of possibilities at once, which is exactly what chemistry and biology need. Real labs. Real scientists. Big ideas — explained so viewers and listeners of any age can follow along. 🧪 Welcome to The Quantum Kid! Check out the rest of the episodes, where we talk about quantum and space, quantum and robots, quantum and time travel - and so much more! Like, subscribe and leave comments for Kai!!!

    27 min
  2. Scott Aaronson's Chat with Kai: Time Travel, Wormholes, Paradoxes, and the Future of Physics

    JAN 8

    Scott Aaronson's Chat with Kai: Time Travel, Wormholes, Paradoxes, and the Future of Physics

    In this episode of The Quantum Kid, Katia Moskvitch and nine-year-old co-host Kai explore one of the most fascinating frontiers in modern physics: time travel, and what quantum mechanics and relativity really say about it. Our guest is Scott Aaronson — one of the world’s leading experts in quantum computing, the Schlumberger Centennial Chair of Computer Science at the University of Texas at Austin, and director of UT’s Quantum Information Center.Together, we dig into the science behind the movies — from Back to the Future to Interstellar — and unpack what physics actually allows. Scott explains:- Why traveling forward in time is real physics, not science fiction- What a closed timelike curve is, and why it matters for time travel- How relativity links wormholes and time travel to the past- Why stable wormholes would require negative energy, something never observed- How time-travel paradoxes like the Grandfather Paradox and Shakespeare Paradox challenge our understanding of reality- How quantum superposition and David Deutsch’s 1991 model introduce the idea of branching timelines- Why quantum computers interacting with their past selves would be unimaginably powerful — far beyond anything we expect real quantum computers to doAlong the way, Kai asks what every curious kid wants to know:Can you bring your homework back from the future? Could Marty McFly really fade out of existence? How much of Interstellar is true? And will we ever time-travel for real?To bring the cosmic perspective to life, this episode also features original footage from the ALMA Observatory in the Atacama Desert — one of Earth’s most advanced instruments for exploring the structure of space-time.Whether you're a kid discovering physics for the first time or a researcher wondering how quantum mechanics might resolve time-travel paradoxes, this conversation offers a clear and insightful journey through some of the biggest open questions in science — from wormholes to quantum gravity.Join us, subscribe, and follow along as we continue exploring the universe, one quantum idea at a time.

    24 min
  3. Can Quantum Computers Help US Explore Space?

    JAN 8

    Can Quantum Computers Help US Explore Space?

    In this episode of The Quantum Kid, 9-year-old Kai and his science writer mum, Katia Moskvitch, travel to the Atacama Desert in Chile, the driest place on Earth. They visit the Paranal Observatory, home to the Very Large Telescope, which combines four 8.2-meter telescopes into a single virtual mirror, giving it the highest optical resolution in the world. The Atacama is so free of light pollution that astronomical observations are stunning, with the Milky Way stretching overhead like a magical, colorful blanket.With the podcast guests: - Avi Loeb, astrophysicist at Harvard University, and - Karen Hallberg, Nobel Peace Prize laureate and theoretical physicist,they take a look at how quantum technologies and AI could transform space exploration, astronomy, the search for signals of extraterrestrial life - and even our understanding of reality itself. From simulating black holes and the Big Bang to using quantum sensing and quantum communication, Kai asks: can quantum and AI help us answer the biggest question of all — are we alone in the cosmos?In a very down-to-Earth and engaging way, Avi and Karen explain how quantum computing and AI could help scientists process massive amounts of telescope data, explore galaxies, and probe the deepest mysteries of space like dark matter and dark energy. The episode also tackles a big question: could these technologies one day replace human scientists, or are they tools that amplify human curiosity and discovery?Quantum sensors could detect faint gravitational waves or measure tiny changes in space environments with unprecedented precision. Quantum communication may one day link spacecraft across vast distances with ultra-fast, secure signals, while quantum-designed materials may protect astronauts from cosmic radiation on long journeys to Mars and beyond.Watch now on The Quantum Kid YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hWrnl0jiZn4Explore other episodes for more fun, educational videos on quantum computing, AI, and their role in the cosmos.#QuantumComputing #AI #QuantumTech #SpaceExploration #Astronomy #Entanglement #QuantumSensors #TheQuantumKid #KaiTheQuantumKid #QuantumPhysics #Innovation #STEM #Learning #LifeLongLearning #Universe #Space

    22 min
  4. Step with Kai into the ETH Zurich Quantum Lab - and program a quantum computer!

    JAN 8

    Step with Kai into the ETH Zurich Quantum Lab - and program a quantum computer!

    In this episode, a 9-year-old codes on a real quantum computer!Join us as we visit an actual quantum computing lab at ETH Zurich - Albert Einstein's alma mater - with Kai, The Quantum Kid. ⭐ And if you haven't yet, don't forget to like and subscribe to our channel! Together, we step inside the cutting-edge world of superconducting qubits and meet Dr Anatoly Kulikov, one of the ETH researchers pushing the limits of physics. And... we even see Kai run his very own quantum algorithm on a live quantum processor!What to expect in this episode: A behind-the-scenes tour of the quantum hardware lab—cryostats, control electronics and all;A engaging, easy-to-follow (for once!) walkthrough of how qubits work and why they can solve certain problems faster than classical computers;Kai executing a simple Qiskit program and watching the results come back from a real quantum computer.Whether you’re completely new to quantum or already working in the field, you’ll get a close-up look at the technology that’s reshaping computing—and the curiosity that drives the next generation of scientists.💡 This podcast is part of Tesseract Quantum’s channel, where you will find more episodes of The Quantum Kid Podcast, as well as our Qubits & Coffee quantum programming webinars, aimed at teaching everyone to program on a quantum computer.And now for those wishing to dive deeper: In this demo, Kai runs what’s called a Rabi experiment on a real quantum computer. Think of a qubit as a tiny arrow that can point anywhere on a ball—this ball is called the Bloch sphere. When we send the qubit a carefully timed “pulse,” the arrow starts to swing back and forth, just like a playground swing.By slowly changing the length of that pulse and measuring where the arrow ends up, we see a beautiful wave pattern in the results—this is the Rabi oscillation. It’s the qubit’s way of showing how it moves between its two possible states.The Bloch sphere is simply the scientist’s map for that motion, letting us picture the qubit’s dance in 3-D space. Seeing the wave appear in the data is proof that the qubit is behaving exactly as quantum physics predicts. Watch the video to see the results!

    19 min

About

Can a 9-year-old help decode the future of quantum tech? In this unique podcast, Kai — aka The Quantum Kid — teams up with his mom to ask bold questions that challenge a quantum expert and a business leader in every episode. Each 20-minute show makes cutting-edge ideas fun, clear, and surprisingly useful. Smart, curious minds of any age welcome.