EU Quantum Strategy Invests €50 Million to Protect Critical Sectors and Launch Quantum Chip Pilot Lines
EU Quantum Strategy Invests €50 Million to Protect Critical Sectors and Launch Quantum Chip Pilot Lines
The European Commission has unveiled its EU Quantum Strategy following the June adoption of post-quantum cryptography measures to reinforce cybersecurity. This strategy is designed to secure Europe’s leadership in quantum by 2030, building a sovereign ecosystem that nurtures startups and fast-tracks scientific progress to real-world solutions. Key areas targeted include research and innovation, EU quantum strategy infrastructure, ecosystem growth, space and dual-use technologies, and workforce development.
A major component is the EU Quantum Strategy in the Europe Research and Innovation Initiative, a collaborative EU and Member States program to support essential research and deliver applications for public and industrial sectors. The plan features a new quantum design facility and six pilot lines for their EU quantum strategy chip manufacturing, with up to €50 million in public investment to transition scientific prototypes into scalable products.
Initiatives also include launching a pilot for the European Quantum Internet, growing Quantum Competence Clusters, and establishing the European Quantum Skills Academy by 2026. Work with the European Space Agency is planned to develop a Quantum Technology Roadmap in Space, also supporting the European Armament Technological Roadmap.
Henna Virkkunen, executive vice president for technological sovereignty, security, and democracy, said, “Quantum science is advancing fast, and we are close to historic scientific and technological breakthroughs. Europe’s longstanding leadership in quantum, supported by a strong talent base and research infrastructure, positions us to lead globally. The Quantum Europe Strategy brings together Member States, industry, academia, and society to unlock the full potential of quantum technologies.”
Europe’s quantum sector features unique characteristics—many core technologies are still in the early stages. Advancing these from foundational research to market could otherwise take up to 15 years. The strategy proposes a tailored lifecycle logic, integrating research, innovation, infrastructure, and early market activities in a continuous cycle to accelerate development.
Europe still faces key scientific and engineering hurdles in their EU quantum strategy, which must be overcome and rapidly brought to market before international competitors secure a lead. The Quantum Europe Research and Innovation Initiative aims to address these roadblocks with targeted science and technology calls and market-disruptive research activities, speeding up quantum innovation and the transfer of discoveries to industry.
Currently, only about 5% of global private funding in quantum goes to European firms. The strategy aims to raise this share, fueling startup and scaleup growth and encouraging European industries to adopt homegrown quantum solutions. Quantum tech is expected to drive advances in sectors from pharmaceuticals to critical infrastructure protection and will be vital for industrial competitiveness and dual-use defense and security.
By 2040, the EU quantum strategy sector could create thousands of high-skill jobs in the EU and surpass a global market value of €155 billion.
The EU’s EuroQCI and Quantum Internet initiatives are constructing secure, autonomous quantum communications networks to protect critical data, public communication, and infrastructure, supporting Europe’s internal security through the ProtectEU strategy. The EuroQCI will be a secure network across the EU and overseas territories, using technology developed under the Quantum Technologies Flagship and Horizon 2020 OPENQKD project. The Quantum Internet initiative will prepare the next generation of quantum networks, supporting distributed quantum computing, sensing, and ultra-secure data exchange.
The Quantum Strategy details the deployment of terrestrial quantum networks for real-world QKD testing. Pilot applications include secure hospital data transfer, encrypted government communication, and power grid control. These pilots show how QKD can protect public services and national operations.
A fully European quantum supply chain is being developed, alongside a QKD testing and evaluation facility for pre-certification and integration into network architectures. These actions align with EU cybersecurity laws, including NIS2, the upcoming Cybersecurity Act review, and ENISA’s Quantum-Safe Cryptography roadmap to ensure quantum technologies are secure, reliable, and resilient from the start.
The EU is also establishing a network of mobile and stationary quantum gravimeters to detect underground features such as water, gas, minerals, magma, and buried infrastructure. These are valuable for earth and geophysical sciences, climate monitoring, civil engineering, hazard prevention, and defense, including detecting man-made underground structures and monitoring critical infrastructure.
Within the next three to five years, a Europe-wide gravimeter network will be rolled out, with high-altitude platforms and a first quantum space gravimetry Pathfinder Flight after 2030. Quantum gravimetry integration under future IRIS2 missions will also be explored, paving the way for a comprehensive ground, airborne, and space-based gravimeter network for earth observation and dual-use applications.
To solidify its position in quantum sensing, metrology, and testing, the EU will create a European Quantum Sensing, Measurement and Testing Roadmap and support standards development with metrology institutes and Member States. Ensuring secure, European-controlled supply chains for critical quantum sensing components is a key aim.
The Commission will coordinate closely with Member States and the quantum ecosystem—including academia, startups, industry, and innovation partners—to realize the strategy. A high-level advisory board of quantum experts, including European Nobel laureates, will provide independent guidance on implementation.
A forthcoming Quantum Act proposal, expected in 2026, will further reinforce the ecosystem by incentivizing investment in pilot production under EU-wide or national initiatives.
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