This report is from today's CNBC Daily Open, our international markets newsletter. CNBC Daily Open brings investors up to speed on everything they need to know, no matter where they are. Like what you see? You can subscribe here.

What you need to know today

Alphabet spikes after Google announces 'breakthrough' quantum chip
Shares of Google's parent company Alphabet rose 6% on Tuesday, a day after the company hailed its latest quantum computing chip as a "breakthrough." On Monday, Alphabet revealed its "Willow" chip, which performed a computation in under five minutes that would take one of today's fastest supercomputers 10 septillion years — that's 1 followed by 25 zeros — Google said.

South Korea's ex-defense minister attempts suicide; police raid presidential office
The fallout from South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol's brief imposition of martial law continues amid reports of his office being raided and his former defense minister attempting suicide. Police reportedly searched the president's office on Wednesday as part of an investigation into the six-hour martial law declaration. Separately, ex-defense minister Kim Yong-hyun reportedly made an attempt on his own life in his eastern Seoul detention facility.

China ramps up Wall Street meetings ahead of Trump inauguration
Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng has met with several U.S. finance executives in the last month as Beijing seeks to build relationships ahead of President-elect Donald Trump's planned tariffs on China. Some of the meetings are with top executives from Blackrock, Goldman Sachs and Citigroup. 

Dow notches fourth straight day of losses
U.S. markets fell on Tuesday as the S&P 500 lost 0.3% and the Nasdaq Composite dropped 0.25%, with both indexes notching back-to-back losses. The Dow Jones Industrial Average declined for a fourth day, slipping 0.35%. Asian markets were mixed, with most major indexes staying range-bound. 

[PRO] Trump's proposed tariffs could cause unintended consequences: Bernstein
Trump's proposed tariffs could have unintended consequences for certain brands, such as negative sentiment from Chinese consumers that could hurt U.S. companies' sales in that country, Bernstein found.

The bottom line

What is quantum computing, and how does it work? 

In classical computing, information is stored in bits. Each bit is either a one or zero. Quantum computing uses quantum bits or qubits which can be zero, one or something in between.

If you thought that sounded like something out of the Marvel multiverse, you are not alone. Every time a company comes up with a quantum computing breakthrough, such as Alphabet's Willow chip, the million-dollar question is: "What can it be used for?"

Will we see faster laptops, faster smartphones, or can quantum computing be used for artificial intelligence applications? Will we be able to say "Open the pod bay doors please, HAL?" to a quantum computer? 

Proponents of quantum computing claim it will be able to solve problems that current computers can't. The theory is that quantum computers will be able to process much larger volumes of data, leading to potential breakthroughs in areas like medicine, science and finance.

Shares of Alphabet surged 6% on Tuesday, but could this enthusiasm be unfounded? After all, if there are currently no real world uses for quantum computing, the solution cannot be put to solving problems, let alone commercialized. 

In short, quantum computing needs to have a purpose. It needs a "ChatGPT moment", as an analyst told CNBC, where people can utilize the technology such as how the chatbot allowed the world to tangibly experience artificial intelligence. 

HAL may just have to wait a while. Which as fans of Stanley Kubrick's epic "2001: A Space Odyssey" might know, isn't necessarily a bad thing.

— CNBC's Arjun Kharpal contributed to this report.