When quantum computers come online, all encryption will fail. James Barratt explains how AI will aid the way for the emergence of quantum computing.

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"We are in an AI revolution," according to James Barratt, documentary filmmaker and author. "AI of course has gone through a number of false springs, but this one seems to have a lot more traction."

TechRepublic's Dan Patterson met with Barratt to discuss where artificial intelligence (AI) is headed, and how businesses can take advantage.

SEE: Managing AI and ML in the enterprise (ZDNet special report) | Download the report as a PDF (TechRepublic)

AI previously was used to enter data, and get back an answer, he said. Now, AI will learn about its users and what they are doing. Virtual assistants, such as Siri and Cortana, are good examples of how AI is currently learning about its users, and giving them useful information like how long it will take them to get to work. Self-driving cars learn in the same way as well, by experience.

SEE: IT leader's guide to the future of quantum computing (Tech Pro Research)

One thing that's going to happen in the next five years because of AI and machine learning is the advent of quantum computing, according to Barratt. Quantum computing takes advantage of the quantum-related phenomenon to perform operations on data, and process a large amount of data quickly. "When quantum computers come online, all encryption will fail," he said.

"That's something that's going to be a real game-changer," he added. "Basically the whole internet will become obsolete, and any kind of security or encryption will become obsolete once quantum computers are online."

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