Note that that’s in the “half turn metric” where 90° and 180° turns of a single face are both considered “one move.” It’s the more common metric but not the only way to measure.
In the quarter turn metric, every scramble can be solved in at most 26 rotations (and the solutions are often very different from the optimal half turn metric solution!).
Also, both of these results are relatively recent compared to when the cube was invented. The HTM fact in 2010 and the QTM fact in 2014.
Note that that’s in the “half turn metric” where 90° and 180° turns of a single face are both considered “one move.” It’s the more common metric but not the only way to measure.
In the quarter turn metric, every scramble can be solved in at most 26 rotations (and the solutions are often very different from the optimal half turn metric solution!).
Also, both of these results are relatively recent compared to when the cube was invented. The HTM fact in 2010 and the QTM fact in 2014.