How Europe can score points in the competition for quantum technology

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The challenge of how Europe can keep up with the USA and China in the race to introduce quantum technology was the focus of the debate "Quantum year 2025 – How far have we come with quantum technology?" at the O2 Telefónica Basecamp in Berlin. In their comparison of locations, the experts pointed out the capital strength of major US investors, but also mentioned the advantages of Europe.

The year 2025 has been declared the International Year of Quantum Science and Technology by UNESCO, as 100 years have passed since the formulation of quantum mechanics by Werner Heisenberg in 1925. Today, Germany and Europe are facing strong international competition, as the USA and China are investing heavily in quantum technology. "As in many areas, we also have very good research in quantum technology in Germany," said Henry Marx (SPD), State Secretary for Science and Research in the Berlin Senate Administration.

Europe in a strong position

Jan Goetz, CEO and co-founder of quantum computer manufacturer IQM Quantum Computers, also spoke about Europe's strengths in his assessment of the location comparison: "The entire field comes from science. Most start-ups, including us, are spin-offs from universities. As a result, we have an extremely strong position in Europe. We have a larger number of companies in this field than the USA."

Big tech invests billions

The big challenge is scaling. "IBM, Google and Amazon are investing billions. Three large US start-ups listed on the stock exchange have raised more than 1.6 billion euros in capital in recent months," he said. "I think we are the best-funded company in Europe. We have raised 200 million euros and are currently doing a major financing round. That's relatively little compared to the USA and China. We need support from politicians because we can't manage such large financing rounds in Europe."

He sees one solution in government-awarded research purchases, which companies can apply for in order to then sell products with the help of public funding. "This forces companies like us to think in a product- and market-oriented way. We can then book sales and attract investors. If you look at the leverage: For every euro that comes from politicians as a research contract, we get at least ten times as much investor money. This is therefore much more effective than if politicians were to invest directly or give grants." Thanks to this model, there are more quantum computing centers in Europe than in the USA, says Goetz. "That means we are at the forefront. We need to tell this story more in order to be able to fight against the billions invested by corporations."

In the discussion, State Secretary for Research Marx looked beyond quantum technology in terms of location policy. "In Germany, we don't have a political culture in which strategic discussions are held openly anyway. In France, they revolve much more around questions of national sovereignty and national interests. In Germany, we are more reserved for good reason. Despite necessary security considerations, Europe's central interest is not that we have a closed-off world. Because there are fewer ideas, progress, prosperity and humanity there, said Marx.

Quantum superiority in China?

When asked by moderator Jakob Beautemps how we could find out if quantum superiority was achieved in China or elsewhere, Professor Oliver Benson, quantum physicist at Berlin's Humboldt University, replied: "That's difficult because nobody wants to give away such superiority. On the other hand, the topic is still very scientific, which means that most users come from research and this can only work if it is open. On the one hand, people in Europe want to own such a technology themselves, as the number of international partners is decreasing, but on the other hand, openness is absolutely essential. This is a difficult area of tension at the moment, but it has to be accepted."

One of the challenges for progress in quantum technologies is the small number of people who have the confidence to deal with this complicated topic scientifically or professionally. In science, "you have to make sure that the fascination with quantum physics sufficiently covers up the reputation for difficulty," said Benson with a grin. "But that's hard and I can't remember us ever being overrun by interested people." Most of the students in his department come from abroad: "We would be happy if we had more students. It takes a long time to get an overview, so you simply need a lot of patience."

Goetz also reported a very international environment in his company, where the 330 employees come from 50 nations. He has no personnel problems with the developers, but it is more difficult in product development and marketing because there are hardly any specialists with experience in the young industry. "That's why we do a lot of training in the company to build up these teams." Barbara Wellmann, Director Quantum.Link at the consulting firm Deloitte, had a more positive experience: "Whenever I advertise a position, I get a lot of applications. But that may be because we work in consulting and you don't need to be so well versed in quantum physics."

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