{"id":201749,"date":"2025-10-15T12:12:07","date_gmt":"2025-10-15T12:12:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/201749\/"},"modified":"2025-10-15T12:12:07","modified_gmt":"2025-10-15T12:12:07","slug":"calls-for-more-government-support-and-faster-investment-if-uk-to-lead-in-quantum-computing","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/201749\/","title":{"rendered":"Calls for more government support and faster investment if UK to lead in quantum computing"},"content":{"rendered":"

<\/p>\n

The UK risks squandering its potential to become a leader in the field of quantum computing<\/a> without more support from the government to build sovereign capabilities in the technology, the Science, Innovation and Technology Committee has heard.<\/p>\n

The committee exists to examine the output and policies of the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT).<\/p>\n

The committee is amid an inquiry to pinpoint technological areas it claims DSIT should be championing through its work to establish itself as the new \u201cdigital centre for government\u201d.<\/p>\n

As part of this work, a committee hearing on 14 October turned its attention to what needs to happen to ensure the UK does not squander its potential to become a leader in quantum computing.<\/p>\n

Introducing the session, committee member and Liberal Democrat MP Martin Wrigley described quantum computing as being an \u201cemerging and transformational technology\u201d that the UK has the \u201cvery unusual position\u201d of being \u201cpotentially world leaders\u201d in.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is an opportunity to not make the same mistakes we have made as a country with AI [artificial intelligence] and lose control to other nationalities, but to enforce the UK\u2019s lead,\u201d said Wrigley.<\/p>\n

This line of conversation was then expanded on during the evidence session by an oral submission from Sebastian Weidt, the CEO and co-founder of Haywards Heath-based company Universal Quantum.<\/p>\n

The company is focused on building what Weidt termed modular and utility-scale quantum computers that can be used to accelerate drug discovery by pharmaceutical firms, optimise supply chains and help governments strengthen national security.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur ambition, to be very clear, is not to build a billion-pound company, [but] with the right support, we have the opportunity to build a billion-pound company here in the UK,\u201d said Weidt. \u201cThe societal impact could be profound.\u201d<\/p>\n

And that is entirely possible to achieve in the UK, he continued, but not without some urgent interventions.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have the science, the talent and entrepreneurial drive, but make no mistake \u2013 this is a global race,\u201d he said. \u201cThe UK has an unfair advantage with homegrown talent, but risks losing it if decisive actions are not taking effect.\u201d<\/p>\n

Universal Quantum started as an organisation spun out of a university<\/a> and has now become a \u201cglobally recognised leader in modular quantum architectures\u201d, said Weidt.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have entities in Germany, the US, Denmark, and [we are in the] process of expanding our efforts within the EU and in Asia,\u201d he continued.<\/p>\n

\u201cThese nations have become major supporters of Universal Quantum, demonstrated, for example, through contracts worth in excess of \u20ac70m from Germany. And yet here in the UK \u2026 [in terms of government support] the contrast is stark.\u201d<\/p>\n

Weidt continued: \u201cThe UK is rich in scientific talent. Our universities, our research base \u2026 all give the UK a really strong foundation in quantum, but there are challenges we must address if we are to stop key quantum computing capabilities being lost to foreign players.\u201d<\/p>\n

Expanding on this point, he said the UK needs to \u201cgo further\u201d than building research and development centres for quantum that other nations can use to \u201cachieve quantum superiority\u201d.<\/p>\n

What the UK needs to do, according to Weidt, is build its own \u201ctrue sovereign quantum capability\u201d through the \u201ccreation and procurement of virtual and quantum computers made in Britain\u201d.<\/p>\n

But there are a number of challenges and barriers<\/a> that need to be overcome to make that possible, including speeding up the time it takes players in the field of quantum computing to access investment, with Weidt calling out entities such as the British Business Bank and the National Wealth Fund as being \u201ctoo slow and risk-averse\u201d on this front.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn a field where other nations are moving with urgency, speed of execution is as important as the scale of the commitment,\u201d he said.\u00a0\u201cIf these institutions would act as fast-moving lead investors, it would unlock significant follow-on capital already in the markets.\u201d<\/p>\n

From an infrastructure perspective, Weidt said it is important to build quantum facilities in the UK, but also to manufacture quantum computers for global export too.<\/p>\n

\u201cLet\u2019s keep the hardware development, the tools, the knowledge and the talent on our shores, and export the discoveries that follow,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

On a related point, he said it is worth noting that Germany has contracted Universal Quantum to build machines for it, but the UK has not, and a lack of senior government support for the quantum computing sector risks putting the industry on the back foot.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen we engage with foreign governments on large deals, they often ask whether we have senior-level government support,\u201d he said. \u201cThis has not always been easy to demonstrate. Greater coordination between commercial engagement and financial support at the state level would significantly enhance our ability to export Great British innovations.\u201d<\/p>\n

Weidt added: \u201cNone of these are theoretical asks \u2026 they are practical steps that would help us ensure the UK retains a sovereign capability in quantum computing. They will show investors and international partners [we are] serious about leading in this field.\u201d \u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" The UK risks squandering its potential to become a leader in the field of quantum computing without…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":201750,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[21],"tags":[4323,86,56,54,55],"class_list":{"0":"post-201749","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-computing","8":"tag-computing","9":"tag-technology","10":"tag-uk","11":"tag-united-kingdom","12":"tag-unitedkingdom"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/201749","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=201749"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/201749\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/201750"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=201749"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=201749"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=201749"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}