Recently, Google's Quantum AI team proposed that future quantum computers could derive private keys from Bitcoin public keys in about 9 minutes. The actual threat involves exploiting the average 10-minute block confirmation time in Bitcoin to hijack unconfirmed transactions in the mempool. If a quantum computer can run Shor's algorithm within 9 minutes to crack the private key, hackers could seize transactions during this window.

While Bitcoin's mining algorithm (SHA-256) is relatively secure, the elliptic curve signatures that guarantee asset ownership are highly vulnerable to quantum attacks. Additionally, the 2021 Taproot upgrade defaulted to public key disclosure, inadvertently increasing exposure; currently, about 6.9 million early Bitcoin are at long-term risk due to exposed public keys. (CoinDesk)