Legislation, Regulation, Competition: Quantum Computing Policy in 2024

Global governments stepped up to the quantum computing challenge in 2023, with several countries issuing policies that support the quantum economy to keep up with allies and stay ahead of competing nations.

Some examples include the U.K., which issued its £2.5 billion Quantum Strategy in March, Australia launching its $1 billion National Quantum Strategy in May and the U.S. renewing the Quantum Initiative Act in November.

But governments weren’t just supporting quantum enterprises and researchers, they have also identified use cases where quantum computers might improve on current classical solutions.

Enter Quantum has collected quantum predictions from experts to find out what to expect in the coming year.

D-Wave vice president of global government relations and public affairs Allison Schwartz

In addition to the U.K.’s National Quantum Strategy Missions, you have the Canadian National Quantum Strategy and the roadmapping exercises. You now have the reauthorization in the U.S. and Australia looking at quantum for transportation optimization.  Japan has been looking at it for tsunami evacuation routes and optimizing staff during emergencies like Covid.

I think that you're going to start to see the meaning of the software layer and these quantum hybrid applications. It's not quantum in a silo, it’s how we utilize the technology as one of the arrows in our proverbial quiver.

Related:Preparing for Post-Quantum Risk: Quantum Cybersecurity in 2024

People asked me why I got into quantum. When you're talking about something like energy policy, the same things that have been discussed for four years and they haven't changed anything. Quantum is this open, free pasture and there's so much really exciting stuff coming. We just have come together on this rising tide – the quantum industry is not an us versus them thing.

In 2024 you will see an explosion of small businesses – the innovation of small businesses never ceases to amaze me. Part of the U.S. legislation that passed through the House mandated that they bring in more small businesses. This is the hardest part for government because it is not used to working with small businesses. They talk a lot about them, but when you get to the process of applying for grants, you need a legal team or a large company to understand and navigate.

D-Wave President and CEO Alan Baratz

The U.S. Government’s usage of annealing quantum computing will increase given the anticipated passing of legislation including the National Quantum Initiative and the National Defense Authorization Act. 2024 will see a rapid uptick in quantum sandbox and test bed programs, with directives to use all types of quantum technology, including annealing, hybrid and gate models. These programs will focus on near-term application development to solve real-world public sector problems, from public transportation vehicle routing to electric grid resilience. 

The global quantum race will continue to heat up, as the U.S. and its allies aggressively push for near-term application development. While the U.S. is now starting to accelerate near-term applications, other governments like Australia, Japan, the U.K., and the E.U. have been making expedited moves to bring quantum in to solve public sector challenges.  This effort will greatly expand in 2024. Top public sector areas of focus will likely be sustainability, transportation and logistics, supply chain and health care.  

Qrypt CTO and co-founder Denis Mandich

We believe that quantum computers will come online sooner than anticipated in the next five years, advancing key government regulations in both the private and public sectors. Qubit counts have doubled nearly every year since 2020. I expect this pace to continue, making it possible for quantum computers to be able to run more and more complex calculations than previously possible. In preparation, NIST will issue new Post-Quantum Cryptography Standards for companies and governments to begin transitioning encryption methods.

As the U.S. prioritizes quantum development, the government will continue to push legislation forward that helps protect U.S. data from China’s exploitation, especially as the risk of China using quantum computers to monetize vast repositories of encrypted IP continues to heighten.