GINC Critical Technology
Capability group

Quantum Technologies

The capacity to command the second quantum revolution: computation, communication, sensing and metrology, and the cryptography that survives it.

Domain
Critical Technology · Hard Power
Identifier
factbase.org/cpg/2AVA17HE0F
Capabilities
4

Bounds. Holds quantum technology as national capacity; the enabling materials, cryogenics and photonics are shared with the materials group, the specialist workforce with Human Capital, and the migration of national systems to quantum-resistant cryptography reads at the deploy layer with the systems themselves across Strategic Infrastructure and National Security.

Capabilities

Quantum ComputingTRDFGP7J2VThe capacity to build and operate quantum computers, hardware platforms, error correction, and the algorithms and software that will extract advantage from them.Research63.7k papers +220%United States 21%Patents10.8k families +326%China 42%Quantum Communication8M8XMR9X07The capacity to communicate with quantum states, quantum key distribution, quantum networks and the path toward quantum-secure links at national scale.Research23.7k papers +140%China 23%Patents5.6k families +121%China 67%Quantum Sensing & MetrologyVMXVW59Y0TThe capacity to measure the world at quantum precision, sensing, timing and metrology beyond classical limits, for navigation, detection and science.Research9.3k papers +104%United States 19%Patents1.6k families +35%China 41%Post-Quantum CryptographyNVJC13B329The capacity to develop, standardise and migrate to cryptography that withstands quantum attack, the algorithms, the implementations and the national transition of systems that must stay secret for decades.Research5.8k papers +142%China 19%Patents505 families +125%South Korea 25%

The capabilities compared

Papers and patent families, 2020–2024, with growth on the five years before and the leading nation in each.

CapabilityPapersGrowthResearch leaderFamiliesGrowthPatent leader
Quantum Computing63.7k+220%United States 21%10.8k+326%China 42%
Quantum Communication23.7k+140%China 23%5.6k+121%China 67%
Quantum Sensing & Metrology9.3k+104%United States 19%1.6k+35%China 41%
Post-Quantum Cryptography5.8k+142%China 19%505+125%South Korea 25%

Research across the group

Papers by year for each capability, and the nations' shares of the group's papers, 2020–2024. A capability that shares a v0.0 topic with another counts it in both.

  1. 1United States10.6%10,905 papers
  2. 2China9.9%10,148 papers
  3. 3Germany3.9%4,045 papers
  4. 4India3.3%3,400 papers
  5. 5United Kingdom3.0%3,098 papers
  6. 6Japan2.7%2,809 papers
  7. 7Canada1.9%1,909 papers
  8. 8Italy1.8%1,806 papers
  9. 9France1.8%1,806 papers
  10. 10Spain1.4%1,464 papers

Patents across the group

Patent families by priority year for each capability, and the origin nations' shares of the group's families, 2020–2024. A family in two capabilities' classes counts in both.

  1. 1China48.6%8,971 families
  2. 2United States20.5%3,786 families
  3. 3Japan6.9%1,278 families
  4. 4South Korea5.2%953 families
  5. 5Germany4.6%850 families
  6. 6France2.3%431 families
  7. 7United Kingdom2.1%392 families
  8. 8Canada1.6%287 families
  9. 9Israel1.0%182 families
  10. 10Finland0.9%164 families

Companies

172 companies in Quantum Technologies, across 7 regions. The leading 12:

  1. 1HoneywellHoneywell Aerospace develops cold-atom and quantum inertial sensors for GPS-denied navigation and holds major international patent filings in atomic sensing, and it is also the majority owner of Quantinuum.Manufacture
  2. 2IBMIBM Research Zurich researchers co-authored three of the four NIST PQC standards (ML-KEM/CRYSTALS-Kyber, ML-DSA/CRYSTALS-Dilithium, FN-DSA/Falcon), and IBM sells Quantum Safe migration tools and services.Research
  3. 3ToshibaLargest international patent holder in quantum communication and a leading commercial QKD vendor (multiplexed and twin-field QKD systems) deployed in BT's London network, in Korea and in Southeast Asia; taken private by JIP in 2023.Manufacture
  4. 4Alphabet (Google DeepMind)Google co-designed SPHINCS+ (SLH-DSA), turned on hybrid ML-KEM key exchange by default in Chrome, and is rolling PQC out across Google Cloud KMS and its internal traffic.Software & services
  5. 5Microchip TechnologyMicrochip's frequency and time systems unit is the leading maker of commercial chip-scale atomic clocks (CSAC), cesium beam standards and hydrogen masers used in defence, telecoms and metrology.Manufacture
  6. 6QuantumCTekUSTC spin-off that supplies QKD equipment for China's Beijing-Shanghai backbone and metro quantum networks; China Telecom Quantum Group became its controlling shareholder in 2025 and it stands here for that group.Manufacture
  7. 7IonQ (incl. ID Quantique)Took control of ID Quantique, the Swiss pioneer of commercial QKD and QRNG (Clavis/Cerberis), in 2025 and also bought Qubitekk and Lightsynq; IDQ deployed Slovakia's national skQCI network.Manufacture
  8. 8Northrop GrummanNorthrop Grumman developed the nuclear magnetic resonance gyroscope and other atomic inertial sensors, and is among the top international patent applicants in quantum sensing.Integration
  9. 9PQShieldOxford spin-out whose researchers contributed to the NIST PQC standards (Falcon and others); it licenses PQC hardware IP and software libraries to chipmakers and OEMs.Design
  10. 10QuantinuumHoneywell-majority-owned maker of the H-series and Helios trapped-ion quantum computers, which hold record two-qubit gate fidelities and quantum volume.Design
  11. 11HuaweiRanks among the top international patent applicants in quantum communication (CV-QKD and QKD network integration), with work done in Shenzhen and at its Düsseldorf research centre.Design
  12. 12SafranSafran's Orolia business, including Spectratime, which it acquired in 2022, makes rubidium and passive hydrogen maser atomic clocks for Galileo and resilient timing systems.Manufacture
All 172 in the Companies table →