Six policy trends shaping Europe’s quantum industry
For decades, the quantum sector has been the preserve of physicists and research laboratories. Today, quantum is squarely on the European political agenda. In his influential report on the future of European competitiveness, Mario Draghi noted that the quantum sector could contribute up to €850 billion to the EU economy in the next 15-30 years – prompting the European Commission to launch a strategy to achieve European global quantum leadership by 2030. Likewise, in mid-March, the UK Government announced £2bn in investment to ensure the UK stays at the forefront of quantum innovation, while the French Government has already picked winners within its quantum startup ecosystem – and showered them with public investment.
This political focus reflects a deeper transformation within the quantum sector itself, which is rapidly moving from theoretical research to practical applications. Many of these applications have strategic implications for state sovereignty – including breaking the cryptographic systems that secure today’s communications, accelerating drug discovery and enabling satellite-free navigation. A recent European Commission White Paper on the future of defence highlighted quantum as one of seven critical security capabilities, while the UK’s National Security Strategy identifies quantum as a critical technology for UK security.
In a turbulent geopolitical context, European leaders fear not just losing the quantum race – but falling behind non-Western powers. China alone has pledged more than $12 billion in public research funding, eclipsing Western investment, while Russia unveiled newer higher performance quantum computers last year. Europe’s traditional collaborators are also positioning themselves as competitors: the White House is understood to be drafting a sweeping Executive Order to strengthen US competitiveness in the sector.
Against this backdrop, six policy trends are set to shape the quantum industry in Europe:
- Governments are using procurement policy to accelerate quantum commercialisation
In March, the UK became the first country in the world to commit to an advanced procurement programme to build large scale quantum computers on its shores – marking a policy shift by the Government from merely supporting quantum development to realising its benefits for the UK. By supporting the scale up of homegrown quantum companies, the British Government hopes to derisk quantum commercialisation, while signalling to private backers that the UK quantum sector is ripe for investment. Similarly, the European Commission is considering coordinated European procurement of quantum technology – including “Buy European” local origin requirements in tenders issued by EU-27 governments – through its European Quantum Act, a bill expected in Q2 this year.
- The quantum sector is increasingly being caught by economic security legislation
Governments that view quantum technology as a sovereign capability may increasingly use economic security legislation to limit third countries’ access to their homegrown technology – particularly where this has non-civilian uses. The EU’s FDI Screening regulation requires EU-27 governments to consider whether foreign investment in their domestic quantum sector is likely to affect security and public order – and the European Quantum Act may tighten these controls further. At the national level, France and Spain have already introduced export controls on quantum technology.
Major transactions involving European quantum companies are also attracting significant political scrutiny. For example, last year the UK used the National Security Investment Act to review the acquisition of British quantum company, Oxford Ionics, by an American hardware company. The $1.1 billion deal was only allowed to go ahead after the American buyer committed to keep Oxford Ionics’ hardware, research and intellectual property in the UK.
- Policymakers are prioritising making capital available for homegrown quantum start-ups
French quantum champion PASQAL’s decision this month to list on the NASDAQ stock exchange has exposed an uncomfortable truth: deep capital for frontier technologies remains concentrated in the US. As Draghi pointed out in his competitiveness report, EU quantum companies attract only 5% of global private funding, compared with US and Chinese companies that take 50% and 40% respectively.
Governments are already routing significant public investment into the quantum sector. The EU’s new multi-year budget, currently under negotiation, is expected to multiply the bloc’s public tech investment fivefold, including through a new €410 billion European Competitiveness Fund (ECF) for strategic technologies such as quantum. As the EU’s financial commitments to the quantum sector have increased, the Commission has also quietly tightened its eligibility criteria, making it harder for non-EU quantum companies to access European research funding.
However, competition for this limited funding is intense and the investment gap in the quantum sector cannot be plugged by public investment alone. The quantum race has given the European Commission fresh impetus to unify and deepen Europe’s fragmented capital markets, while France, Germany and the UK are reforming pension fund rules to direct more investment towards deep tech start-ups.
- The location of quantum infrastructure is driven by politics
Although governments do not directly decide where tech infrastructure will be built, they are increasingly determining where it can be built. France’s data centre strategy illustrates this shift. Through grid prioritisation, site pre-identification and accelerated permitting, public authorities are effectively filtering which projects can scale, and where. Similar dynamics are emerging across Europe, where energy constraints and administrative capacity are already shaping the geography of AI infrastructure.
Quantum is likely to follow the same trajectory. This is already visible in France and Germany, which are deploying public funding not only to support research, but to anchor quantum ecosystems domestically and shape where infrastructure and industrial capacity develop. In this context, infrastructure location is no longer a neutral market outcome – it is increasingly shaped by policy.
- Quantum supply chains are becoming a strategic vulnerability
Supply chain vulnerabilities that were tolerated when quantum was still in the theoretical research phase have now become a political concern – particularly where dependencies have implications for economic security.
Several vulnerabilities are already visible. The market for ultra-low temperature refrigeration, essential to quantum research, remains highly concentrated, with companies such as Finland-based BlueFors supplying much of the global quantum ecosystem. Recent US export controls on high-performance cooling systems and quantum components demonstrate how these dependencies can become rapidly politicised.
Helium – a critical component for quantum refrigeration - remains geographically concentrated, with roughly one third of global supply produced in Qatar. This creates exposure to supply disruptions and broader geopolitical volatility. The European Commission is likely to make a first attempt to limit quantum sector dependencies through its upcoming European Quantum Act, while the UK Government hopes its recent funding announcements will help strengthen domestic supply chains.
- Ecosystem design and standard-setting will become a geopolitical battleground
Competition in the quantum sector will increasingly be shaped by control over ecosystems – including software layers, developer environments and technical standards. China’s decision to grant open access to its Origin Pilot quantum operating system illustrates how ecosystem design can be used by governments to accelerate developer adoption of their preferred model.
Governments are responding accordingly. Both the EU and the UK are positioning themselves at the centre of global discussions on technological standards for the quantum sector. These efforts reflect a growing recognition that standards are not neutral: they define ecosystem design, influence market structure and determine long-term competitive positioning. Firms that engage early with national, European and global standards bodies will be better placed to influence not only quantum’s technological development, but the rules that govern its adoption.
Political strategy is critical to reach scale in the European quantum market
The quantum sector is at a political inflection point: infrastructure access, funding, supply chains, technological standards, market entry and transactions are all increasingly shaped by political decisions. Recent developments in adjacent tech sectors, such as the semiconductor and AI industries, show how quickly governments can influence technological trajectories once capabilities are perceived as strategic. To achieve commercial outcomes, quantum companies and their investors need a clear-eyed political strategy to anticipate these dynamics, partner with key decisionmakers, and demonstrate how their technology can advance political priorities.
This blog was written by Director Anna Abela and Senior Consultant Roxane Majidi, with additional input from Partner Katie Whitting and Associate Director Euan Edwards.
Flint Global has exceptional people in Brussels, London, Paris and across Europe and Asia-Pacific, able to advise quantum and emerging tech companies and their investors on achieving their commercial objectives in an increasingly complex policy and regulatory environment. Get in touch.
