91% business leaders are planning to invest in quantum computing, report reveals

OpenOcean, a European venture capital firm, IQM Quantum Computers, a European leader in quantum computers, and Lakestar, a European technology investor, have released the OpenOcean–IQM-Lakestar State of Quantum 2022 Report, in association with The Quantum Insider (TQI).

The report shows that 91% of business leaders are investing or planning to invest in quantum computing, a field in which private investment has grown 500% from a total of four million dollars (£336.4m) in 2017 to $2.2bn (£1.9bn) in 2021.

This whitepaper is based on a new cross-industry survey about quantum readiness along with investment data from TQI and other data sources, collating responses from business leaders across the world to understand their preparation and readiness for commercialised quantum computing.

The findings of this report indicate the means through which investors and decision-makers can bridge the gap between the speed and direction of quantum development and what customers are ready and planning for – tapping into the value created by commercial use cases.

Key findings:

• 70% of business leaders are using and developing real-life use cases for quantum computing.
• 61% of business leaders are planning to invest one million dollars (£841.5k) or more in quantum computing over the next three years.
• 63% of business leaders believe that commercialised quantum computing will hit the market in five years.
• 76% of business leaders agreed that there is a skills crisis in quantum computing: slowing innovation and needing to be addressed as a priority.
• 61% of business leaders said the hardware costs of running quantum computing are currently not sustainable.
• Only 10% of firms are cautious that quantum computing will ever be functional for everyday usage.

Preparing for the quantum era

Understanding where the industry currently stands is a critical step for those who wish to take advantage of everything quantum computing has to offer. Investor and customer appetite for real-world use cases and generic, error-correcting quantum machines is growing fast.

Despite challenges arising around the shortage of quantum talent and hardware costs, a significant percentage (33%) of firms see at least an application-specific future for the technology. These businesses understand that quantum computing will bring immense challenges and change over the next few years, identifying the three sectors prime for transformation as cybersecurity, finance, and healthcare, including drug discovery and pharmaceutical research.

Ekaterina Almasque, General Partner at OpenOcean, said: “Our research confirms that we are on a one-way journey to enter the quantum era. The findings are a clear sign that the broader market is starting to buy into the potential of quantum computing, recognising its emerging commercial potential and backing it with significant investment.

“There is a unique opportunity now for first-movers and businesses to carve out an impactful strategy to operate in the new quantum realm. It was encouraging to see software development as a priority for investment – this is where we also see the dire need for advancements.

“Our mission as an early-stage investor in frontier technologies, is to support emerging European leaders in the quantum computing space. These technologies are already hitting the market and will expand and advance in the decades ahead.

“The industry is searching for sound investment strategies and concrete examples of added value; this is why we need to be looking for practical solutions. For businesses to make their mark in a competitive landscape, they will need full stack quantum solutions – built and designed for the problems which need most solving.”

Stephen Nundy, Partner & CTO at Lakestar, said: “We fundamentally believe that in order for quantum to reach its full potential in both the short and long term, we must encourage investment and experimentation in quantum software to allow early adoption that feels naturally accretive to existing platforms and technology developed already.

“Customers do not, and should not, need to be quantum-savvy to be able to develop and deploy hybrid quantum applications which solve real-world problems, create business advantages, and harness the best native quantum hardware available.

“There is certainly much to be excited about in this new computer paradigm – the opportunity for quantum software and hardware companies to work together to build viable platforms for commercial and societal use is already upon us.”