“By 2100, our destiny is to become like the gods we once worshipped and feared. But our tools will not be magic wands and potions but the science of computers, nanotechnology, artificial intelligence, biotechnology, and most of all, the quantum theory.”
That was theoretical physicist and futurologist Michio Kaku in his book, Physics of the Future: How Science Will Shape Human Destiny And Our Daily Lives By The Year 2100.
Will it change the course of humanity? Or, won’t it? The debate dies out against the backdrop of a startup economy bustling with activities around quantum technology, a $97 Bn global market in the making by 2035. In fact, it’s no longer a question of ‘if’ but ‘when’.
With quantum computers now a reality, complex computing problems that are beyond the realms of even the most powerful classical computers can be solved in minutes, exponentially advancing discoveries and innovations across pharma, manufacturing, energy, chemical engineering, and various other fields.
And, how does India feature in this emerging landscape?
As a bright spot, beyond doubt. India is the home to more than 40 quantum computing startups that came up in the past two years, thanks to the government push for the technology through the National Quantum Mission.
At a time when the country is doubling down on its manufacturing game, building capabilities to supply hardware to the world, and battling geopolitical turmoil at the same time, it is vital to assess India’s progress in the global game.
“We have clearly put up the roadmap that by 2029 we will have a commercial quantum computer,” said Dr Nagendra Nagaraja, founder and chief executive of QpiAI, a Bengaluru-based quantum technology startup.
As Inc42 went on to assess India’s growing prowess in quantum technology, Sujoy Chakravarty, who cofounded Quanfluence, said that 2029-30 is the timeline almost every quantum tech builder has set to achieve scalability.
Quanfluence is building India’s first photonic quantum computer. “Though the ‘when’ part is still slightly uncertain globally, we hope our computer will be ready in the expected timeframe. I believe it will take four or five years down the line for these computers to start producing a scalable number of qubits,” he said.
India hit the turf late in adopting Generative AI (GenAI) and in semiconductors, but in quantum technology, it has made considerable progress vis-à-vis the US where the companies received more $1.25 Bn in the first quarter of FY25 alone. Compare this to the Indian government’s $686 Mn (around INR 6,000 Cr) budget for quantum technology for FY24 to FY31.
Can India take the quantum leap with such a glaring gap in the funding support? It’s time for a relook.
Taking A Leaf Out Of Nature
Plants harvest up to 95% of the light they absorb. The transformation of minerals and water into carbohydrates using sunlight takes place in one million billionths of a second. But exactly how plants manage this nearly instantaneous trick has remained elusive.
A recent report in the journal Scientific American links the basic principle of photosynthesis to quantum computing, which explores a multiplicity of different answers at the same time to achieve near-perfect efficiency.
“The universal data is quantum, but human-built data is artificial. Human-generated data is very minuscule compared to what is present in nature. And, to take advantage of the data and to build a model around it, we require quantum computers,” said Nagaraja, whose brainchild QpiAI has pioneered India’s first superconducting quantum computer from the ground up.
With quantum computing, mankind kicks off its journey from where the reach of basic computers ends.
span {
margin: 0;
padding: 3px 8px !important;
font-size: 10px !important;
line-height: 20px !important;
border-radius: 4px !important;
font-weight: 400 !important;
font-style: normal;
font-family: noto sans, sans-serif;
color: #fff;
letter-spacing: 0 !important;
}
.code-block.code-block-55 .tagged {
margin: -4px 0 1px;
padding: 0;
line-height: normal;
}
@media only screen and (max-width: 767px){
.code-block.code-block-55 {
padding:20px 10px;
}
.code-block.code-block-55 .recomended-title {
font-size: 16px;
line-height: 20px;
margin-bottom: 10px;
}
.code-block.code-block-55 .card-content {
padding: 10px !important;
}
.code-block.code-block-55 {
border-radius: 12px;
padding-bottom: 0;
}
.large-4.medium-4.small-6.column {
padding: 3px;
}
.code-block.code-block-55 .card-wrapper.common-card figure img {
width: 100%;
min-height: 120px !important;
max-height: 120px !important;
object-fit: cover;
}
.code-block.code-block-55 .card-wrapper .taxonomy-wrap .post-category {
padding: 0px 5px !important;
font-size: 8px !important;
height: auto !important;
line-height:15px;
}
.single .code-block.code-block-55 .entry-title.recommended-block-head a {
font-size: 10px !important;
line-height: 12px !important;
}
.code-block.code-block-55 .card-wrapper.common-card .meta-wrapper .meta .author a, .card-wrapper.common-card .meta-wrapper span {
font-size: 8px;
}
.code-block.code-block-55 .row.recomended-slider {
overflow-x: auto;
flex-wrap: nowrap;
padding-bottom: 20px
}
.code-block.code-block-55 .type-post .card-wrapper .card-content .entry-title.recommended-block-head {
line-height: 14px !important;
margin: 5px 0 10px !important;
}
.code-block.code-block-55 .card-wrapper.common-card .meta-wrapper span {
font-size: 6px;
margin: 0;
}
.code-block.code-block-55 .large-4.medium-4.small-6.column {
max-width: 48%;
}
.code-block.code-block-55 .sponsor-tag-v2>span {
padding: 2px 5px !important;
font-size: 8px !important;
font-weight: 400;
border-radius: 4px;
font-weight: 400;
font-style: normal;
font-family: noto sans, sans-serif;
color: #fff;
letter-spacing: 0;
height: auto !important;
}
.code-block.code-block-55 .tagged {
margin: 0 0 -4px;
line-height: 22px;
padding: 0;
}
.code-block.code-block-55 a.sponsor-tag-v2 {
margin: 0;
}
}
]]]]>]]>
An IBM report said that quantum computing might change the way chemicals are designed, hydrocarbons are refined, and petroleum reserves are located. While naphthalene, a simple hydrocarbon, could be modelled with about 116 qubits, it would require a classical computer with 7.1 Bn times the total volume of data predicted to be stored electronically till date.
Quantum computing’s ability to simulate larger, more complex molecules could be a game-changer in the pharma space. Pharma companies like Merck, Johnson & Johnson, Roche, and Amgen have filed hundreds of patents related to quantum computing to speed up drug discoveries. It usually takes too long to crack the active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) and then follows a series of trial-and-error exercises. Quantum computing steeply lowers this time spent.
Banking and financial services have geared up to leverage quantum computing for enhanced prediction and risk modelling, market analysis, and so on. From HSBC to JP Morgan and Goldman Sachs, many finance companies have set up their in-house quantum computing teams.
Sreekuttan LS, cofounder and CEO of Bloq Quantum, said that the top sectors that have begun working with quantum computers include finance, pharma, aviation, logistics, defence, and automotive.
A Dream Leap From Binary To Qubits
Quantum computing is not just an opportunity, but a necessity, for India to make its dream of transforming into a $1-Tn digital economy and a global technology powerhouse. The government is upbeat on the technology to bolster its Digital India and Make-in-India initiatives.
The INR 6,003.65 Cr National Quantum Mission (NQM) to help develop computers of 50-1,000 physical qubits in the next eight years is a major step towards accelerating the pace of India’s quantum journey.
For startups, there’s a booming market in the West. Kerala-based Bloq Quantum, for example, is working on quantum algorithms and has started talking to at least 10 enterprise users overseas, including some top banks and aviation companies, for its software platform.
QNu Labs, which is working on cryptosecurity, told Inc42 recently that quantum cybersecurity offerings are gaining traction globally, where the startup is leading India’s entry.
For India to be truly self-reliant, it has to build its tech capabilities in-house and ship products globally. If quantum technology is the next big thing, then the country has to level up in terms of funding support to stay relevant in the game.
Green shoots of funding into quantum technology startups have just begun emerging. QpiAI had the backing of NQM in making its quantum computer with 25 superconducting qubits. NQM has so far supported seven more players, including QNu Labs, QuPrayog, and Quanastra.
The Karnataka government too thrashed out an INR 1,000 Cr Quantum Mission earlier this month to build the state as the ‘Quantum Capital of Asia’ and make it a $20 Bn quantum economy by 2035.
The quantum of public investment, however, remains significantly lower compared to most advanced economies. Japan, for instance, invested $7.4 Bn in quantum technology this year alone. India also trails behind the UK, Germany, US, Australia, South Korea and Spain, according to a McKinsey study.
Manu Iyer, general partner and cofounder of Bluehill VC, which is one of India’s newest deeptech funds, believes that India risks lagging in talent crunch and fabrication capacity if the country doesn’t accelerate collaboration with leading quantum labs abroad. At this point, when quantum technology is in the pre-product-market-fit phase, he sees international partnerships as an important aspect to accelerate.
Private funding is another Achilles’ Heel in India’s quantum journey. An Inc42 analysis showed quantum computing startups have raised around $60 Mn in funding till date. Many venture capitalists focussed on deeptech startups are also taking a cautiously optimistic approach in their quantum bet.
Even as startups and tech builders are dedicated to building hardware and software solutions frugally, in tandem with the resource availability, there is a dire need for capital.
The question is if it’s too early for the VCs to take the plunge.
Looking Through The VC Lens
VCs believe that the scope of quantum technology is massive, but they’re moving slow because the timelines are still blurry. Even Iyer asserted that Bluehill was keen on quantum technologies, but with caution.
“Quantum’s hype-to-revenue gap is stark. Many see it as a 10-15-year horizon for large-scale commercial returns, which doesn’t fit typical fund cycles. Hardware is the hardest bet – trapped-ion, superconducting, and photonic approaches require capital and niche talent that India is struggling with,” he said.
He, however, sees more clarity in areas like quantum-safe encryption, QKD, and high-performance simulation software, especially in defence, telecom, and pharma. He also stressed on the need for more VC partners in the ecosystem with deep knowledge and expertise who can do rigorous due diligence on cryogenics, photonics, and quantum error correction.
YourNest VC, which invested in QpiAI back in 2019, has a slightly different approach. “Frontier technologies like quantum are always high-risk, high-reward. They are also dual-use. In India, the ecosystem is nascent, but that’s precisely why early investments matter,” said Ranjeet Shetye, venture partner at YourNest, while he agreed that some VCs are cautious because of the long wait for commercial use.
He also believes that though there are initial budgetary concerns for Indian startups to compete with the likes of Google, Microsoft, Rigetti, IBM and Xanadu, Indian startups can still lead globally in the long run in areas like AI algorithms, security solutions, and domain-specific services.
Private investors are more willing to take software bets at this point in quantum technology, while government funding can help quantum computer builders to achieve scalability. The hurdles are formidable – talent crunch, capital dearth, ROI uncertainty, and technology risks – but there’s no denying the fortune it augurs.
[Edited By Kumar Chatterjee]
]]>