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Global Quantum Leap: Mapping the Rise of the Quantum Tech Industry and the Emergence of Indian Startups in the New Frontier
Global Quantum Leap: Mapping the Rise of the Quantum Tech Industry and the Emergence of Indian Startups in the New Frontier

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The Quantum Technology (QT) landscape is evolving fast given the rapid pace of technological evolution and breakthroughs. As such, the discussion is shifting from experimental demonstrations and industry applicability to a more substantial emphasis on scalability and real-world applications to an enterprise-focused Quantum Technology strategy enabled through a platform and services model. In this scenario, the tech startups are pushing the boundaries of what’s possible and practical with Quantum Technology. Before getting into what the QT promises next for the global and Indian tech startup industry, let’s take a look at the major advancements in the last 12-18 months that have helped in pushing the envelope in Quantum – technological breakthroughs, rivalry of the tech giants, and startup innovation.

 

Figure 1 Significant Breakthroughs in Quantum Technology in the Last 12-18 months

 

 

Quantum Capital and Clusters: Global Funding Boom and India’s Startup-Led Emergence in Innovation Hubs

As the Quantum Technology progresses towards its next phase of evolution, the one defined by improved error correction, diminishing of the scalability limitations, and reducing challenges related to the high infrastructure costs, it is crucial to look at how the ecosystem is gearing up from an investment perspective and what’s the opportunity out there for the organizations. With this context, the role of tech startups can’t be ignored given they are at the forefront of the Quantum Technology – boosting hardware and software capabilities, building specialized applications, and removing barriers to commercialize the technology.

The last one year has seen a surge in investment activity from enterprises, technology providers, and startups in QT fuelled by the following key factors:

  • Technological advancements and maturityWith the advancements in quantum computing, communication, and sensing, the industry stands at an inflection point where the practical applications are becoming a reality, and the commercialization of QT is not far off.
  • Growing enterprise interestSupply chain optimization, financial portfolio management, accelerating drug discovery, and communication security have emerged as the key areas for Quantum Technology seeing real-world applications. However, many applications today are focused on specialized use cases and optimization problems, rather than broad, transformative changes across all industries.
  • Geopolitical competition and urgencyMuch like the space race or nuclear arms race, Quantum Technology is now part of a broader strategic rivalry – especially between the West (E.g., United States, Germany, and France) and the East (E.g., China, South Korea, Japan, and India). QT is viewed as future defining by the nations globally with national security, defense, and economic implications.            

So, what’s the big investment picture with QT? The investment landscape of QT has changed very fast in the last 1-2 years. Investments in Quantum Computing (QC) have surged in Q1 2025, with over $1.25 billion raised – more than double the funding of $550 million in Q1 2024. This signals a shift from research to commercial readiness. The investments in QC account for more than 70% of all quantum-related funding (Quantum Insider). This might mean that a fresh wave of funding is pouring into QT led by Venture Capitalists (VCs) and governments. But is the funding becoming more fluid rather than controlled and mission-driven only, is the question to be asked. At a broad level, it can be assumed that investment flows have become more adaptive with VCs chasing rapidly evolving opportunities where breakthroughs are non-linear and disruptions have started to emerge from startups as easily as from the academic or the innovation labs. Startup investments in QT grew by ~50% YoY to $2B in 2024, with public funding showing a significant increase of 19 pp from 2023 (McKinsey and Company).

An interesting trend appearing is startups increasingly getting consolidated into clusters globally, with emerging and nascent hubs in Asia and growing clusters in the US and the West. In this context, India has shown enormous prospects through startup activity.

Figure 2 Funding Scenario of Key Startups Leading the Quantum Race in India (Illustrative list)

 

 

From Niche to Notable: India’s Quantum Startup Gaining Ground in the Global Arena

India still lags behind the global peers like the US when it comes to the Quantum startup race. The funding remains minuscule and largely driven by government, with very little private investments. In this context, India’s focus towards Quantum  is driven by thematic excellence and strategic intent than investment boost or global footprint expansion. Indian tech startups are playing across the board and already creating meaningful impact.

Figure 3 Leading Indian Quantum Technology Startups and Focus Areas (Illustrative list)

 

 

Way Forward: Balancing Global Competition and Nation-Building

The road ahead for Indian Quantum Technology startups is both challenging and full of potential. While India lags behind the leading quantum hubs in the West including the US, UK, Germany, and other parts of Asia such as China and South Korea in term of startup funding, private investment and ecosystem maturity, there are first indications of a strengthening Quantum Technology ecosystem in the country supported through government investments. India's National Quantum Mission (NQM), with a substantial corpus of $750 million aims to establish the country as a quantum technology leader by 2031, fostering research, development, and commercialization. The mission enables startups to plug into large academic and government R&D and pilot projects. Startups such as QNu Labs, Taqbit Labs and QPIAI, and few others have been identified and funded under the National Quantum Mission. While this strategic government push is holding the Indian Quantum Technology ecosystem together, challenges around low VC funding, minimal global visibility, and limited industry involvement and collaboration need to be effectively addressed to achieve nation-building goals with Quantum Technology.


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