SAN FRANCISCO, California: Microsoft said it expects to have commercially useful quantum computers by 2029 after unveiling a new quantum chip designed with the help of artificial intelligence.

The announcement places Microsoft alongside rivals racing to commercialize quantum technology, including IBM, which recently outlined its own plans to build advanced quantum systems by the end of the decade.

Microsoft's new chip, called Majorana 2, is the successor to the company's first Majorana chip introduced last year. The technology is part of Microsoft's broader effort to develop quantum computers capable of solving complex problems in medicine, chemistry and cybersecurity far faster than conventional machines.

Unlike competitors such as IBM and Google, which largely use aluminum-based superconducting materials in their quantum chips, Microsoft's latest design relies on lead, a larger atom that the company says delivers major performance gains.

The switch was made possible using Microsoft's AI-powered materials science tools, according to Jason Zander, the executive vice president overseeing the company's quantum computing efforts.

Zander said the new materials produced a 1,000-fold improvement in some performance measures compared with the previous chip. One of the main challenges was finding a way to manufacture lead-based chips without the water-soluble material degrading during production.

"The reason why people don't use it to build chips is it requires an incredibly specialized process to be able to go figure that out. And we figured it out," Zander said.

Microsoft's quantum strategy is built around quasiparticles known as Majoranas. The company previously claimed to have observed these particles, a milestone that forms the foundation of its quantum computing approach.

However, Microsoft's work continues to face scrutiny from some scientists who argue that the company has not publicly released enough data to independently verify its claims.

Last year, the journal Science said it was investigating data used in an earlier Microsoft study from 2020. Critics contend that concerns surrounding the company's data and research methods remain unresolved in the latest findings.

"Microsoft can use as much lead as they like - it is not going to shield them from the basic scientific principle that your results need to be reproducible," said Henry Legg, a lecturer in quantum physics at the University of St. Andrews in Scotland.

Microsoft executives defended the research, saying some details remain confidential because of trade secrets. They added that the company has shared extensive information with the U.S. Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, which is assessing several competing quantum computing technologies.

"We've done enough of the physics to really have great data," Zander said. "Believe me, I would not spend the money on the engineering if I felt like we were still off on the physics."

Microsoft, IBM, Google, Amazon and several Chinese research efforts are all competing to bring practical quantum computing systems to market in the coming years.