As the US Congress remains in recess, the country’s quantum programs risk falling behind due to stagnated federal policy. The National Quantum Initiative Act, which expired over a year ago, has yet to be reauthorized by Congress despite having large bipartisan support. This crucial policy update is necessary for the federal government to utilize quantum technologies soon.
Allison Schwartz, Vice President of Global Government Relations and Public Affairs at D-Wave, emphasizes that Congress must rebalance and refocus quantum programs to include all modalities, such as annealing and gate-model systems, and support applications where quantum works synergistically with emerging technologies like AI and high-performance computing.
The global quantum market is projected to reach $106 billion by 2040, with countries like China investing heavily in quantum technologies. If Congress fails to act, the US risks losing its technological leadership and slowing the development of near-term quantum applications across federal agencies.
Stagnation in Federal Quantum Policy: A Threat to US Leadership
The United States risks falling behind in the global quantum race due to stagnation in federal quantum policy. Despite having large bipartisan support, the National Quantum Initiative Act (NQI), which expired over a year ago, has yet to be reauthorized by Congress. This lack of action threatens the ability of federal agencies to utilize quantum technologies in the near term.
The NQI is crucial for updating US quantum programs in the federal government, and its reauthorization is essential for ensuring that quantum technology is readily available to work on behalf of federal agencies. The policy must balance longer-term hardware advancements with developing and deploying near-term quantum applications. This will help position the United States as a leader in quantum research, application development, and adoption.
The Importance of Inclusive Quantum Programs
Quantum programs must include all quantum computing modalities, including annealing and gate-model systems. They should also support applications where quantum works synergistically with other emerging technologies, such as artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning, and high-performance computing. This is critical for positioning the US globally on quantum research, application development, and adoption.
Federal agencies are slowly moving forward to identify public sector problems that could benefit from quantum. For example, the Department of Defense has requested information to identify near-term quantum applications geared toward defense. Similarly, the Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy seeks problem identification in materials science and quantum chemistry.
The Global Quantum Market: A Growing Opportunity
The global quantum market has not slowed, with current worldwide investments in quantum science and technology exceeding $40 billion. The global quantum technology market is projected to reach $106 billion by 2040. Countries such as China, the United Kingdom, Australia, and Japan are investing heavily in near-term application development of quantum computing.
The US must keep pace with these investments to maintain its technological leadership. Failure to reauthorize and expand the NQI will continue to put US technological leadership at risk and slow the development and adoption of near-term quantum applications across the federal government.
The Need for Urgent Action
As Congress returns, there are a dwindling number of legislative days in the lame-duck session. Policymakers must fully reauthorize and expand the NQI by the end of this Congress. This is essential for ensuring that the US remains competitive in the global quantum race.
The consequences of inaction will be severe, with the development and adoption of near-term quantum applications being slowed down. The US cannot afford to fall behind in this critical area of technology, and urgent action is needed to reauthorize and expand the NQI.
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