With approximately $10 billion in public investment, Europe now trails only China in total spending on quantum technologies, establishing a strong foundation for industrial development. The continent accounts for 44% of global quantum patents and hosts 21 national quantum installations within high-performance computing centers, representing around two-thirds of the global total, compared to just two in the United States.
“Europe’s difficulty was never a shortage of ideas, but a lack of the manufacturing base, early customers, growth capital and coordination needed to build companies of global scale,” and the forthcoming EU Quantum Act aims to address these challenges, potentially securing Europe’s position in this rapidly advancing field.
Europe’s $10 Billion Investment in Quantum Technologies
Europe’s public investment in quantum technologies has reached approximately $10 billion, positioning the continent as second globally in total spend, trailing only China and surpassing the United States. McKinsey estimates demonstrate Europe’s foundational strength extends to intellectual property, with the region accounting for roughly 44% of global quantum patents. This patent dominance suggests a strong lead in early innovation, a critical advantage as the field transitions from research to industrial application.
Beyond patents, Europe currently supplies over half of several critical quantum hardware components, indicating a robust manufacturing base. Member States are exploring methods to consolidate demand, mirroring the success of the EuroHPC supercomputing initiative, with coordinated procurement potentially extending to quantum computing applications beyond defense and space.
The forthcoming European Union Quantum Act aims to solidify this position, and the EU’s planned Quantum Grand Challenges, including a focus on fault-tolerant quantum computing, are envisioned as a counterpart to the U.S. Quantum Benchmarking Initiative. “If Europe wants fault-tolerant quantum computing on a comparable timeline, the EU’s Grand Challenges will need comparable resources and milestone-based, procurement-style funding, not a fraction of them,” the source states.
However, securing growth capital remains a challenge; through 2024, European companies captured just over 12% of disclosed global quantum funding, compared to 44% for U.S. companies. This disparity is further exacerbated by the fact that when investors exit, the majority of buyers originate from outside Europe, potentially leading to a loss of control over key technologies.
To address this, the inclusion of quantum chips in criteria for state aid eligibility could incentivize the development of dedicated fabrication facilities, alongside support for the broader enabling supply chain. This includes areas like cryogenics, control electronics and specialized materials, where Europe already possesses a notable advantage in lithography through ASML.
The lessons learned from the artificial intelligence era, where research leadership did not translate into industrial success, are driving a renewed focus on translating innovation into tangible industries, jobs and improvements in quality of life. With an ambitious Quantum Act, Europe aims to capitalize on its current position and establish itself as a global leader in quantum technologies.
European Strategy for Quantum Chip Fabrication by 2030
Establishing industrial-scale quantum chip fabrication by the 2030s is central to a new European strategy, aiming to avoid repeating past experiences with artificial intelligence where strong research failed to translate into commercial dominance. Unlike software development, quantum chip production demands dedicated manufacturing capacity, a current weakness for Europe despite strengthened research through pilot lines established under the European Chips Act.
The forthcoming Quantum Act seeks to address this by committing to a fabrication capability comparable to those being built in the United States by GlobalFoundries, both supported by the U.S. CHIPS and Science Act. Coordinated European demand for quantum computing, extending beyond applications in space and defense, will support this industrial ambition.
The proposed update to the European Chips Act, known as Chips Act 2.0, will help realize these goals, the company says. Currently, the Act supports quantum pilot lines but lacks a clear pathway for quantum fabrication to qualify as a strategic project, hindering access to necessary funding and support.
Inclusion of quantum chips within the criteria for strategic project status would incentivize development and attract investment. The aim is not to exclude global capital, but to encourage European investors and sovereign funds to maintain longer-term stakes in the companies they support, fostering sustained growth and innovation within the continent.
Co-Development Procurement to Anchor Quantum Industry Growth
A hybrid model for quantum chip production would combine shared infrastructure with dedicated facilities for qubit-chip production, ensuring access for the entire European ecosystem. Unlike the concentration of funding in the United States and China, where 2% and 1% of funds respectively support smaller clusters, nearly 23% of EU quantum funding is currently spread across 34 clusters lacking commercial density. Public procurement is a catalyst for industrial growth by shifting from simply purchasing technology to co-developing it.
Collaborations with VTT in Finland and the Leibniz Supercomputing Centre (LRZ) in Germany exemplify this model, with each new generation of systems building operational know-how. A procurement mechanism inspired by the U.S. Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) could further scale this approach, funding co-development through milestone-based contracts rather than relying solely on research grants. To counter this, a strengthened, EU-backed Scale-up Europe Fund could act as an anchor investor, participating in both primary and secondary funding rounds.
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