A significant amount. That is what EuroHPC, the European high-performance computing initiative, has recently allocated to several calls for proposals dedicated to quantum standards. A bet on interoperability rather than raw performance, in a race where Europe risks seeing its centers of excellence absorbed by American and Chinese proprietary ecosystems.

The stakes go beyond simple research. While Europe excels in fundamental quantum research with institutions like the Institute for Quantum Optics in Vienna or CEA-Leti, it struggles to transform this scientific advantage into industrial leadership. The European strategy is betting everything on standardization to avoid the fragmentation that has already cost Europe its digital sovereignty in semiconductors and artificial intelligence.

The Essential Points

  • EuroHPC is investing significant funds in several calls for proposals to standardize European quantum computing
  • Focus on modular photonic platforms and interoperability rather than pure performance
  • Objective: avoid fragmentation that would benefit proprietary technology giants
  • Several European countries involved in this quantum integration strategy

EuroHPC bets everything on interoperability against fragmentation

The calls launched by EuroHPC target specific strategic areas: standardization of quantum interfaces, development of modular photonic platforms, creation of interoperable software ecosystems, and harmonization of quantum communication protocols. An approach that contrasts sharply with the race for qubits led by IBM, Google, or Chinese champions.

This strategy responds to a harsh diagnosis. Europe has a quantum research base among the most advanced in the world, but suffers from fragmentation between numerous countries and hundreds of laboratories that prevents the emergence of industrial champions. Unlike the United States where a few giants capture most of the talent and funding, or China which coordinates its efforts through centralized national programs, Europe multiplies initiatives without overall coherence.

The EuroHPC initiative changes the game by imposing common standards from the research phase onward. Funding recipients will have to respect strict interoperability protocols, ensuring that their innovations can integrate into a unified European ecosystem. A constraint that potentially slows innovation in the short term, but aims to create a lasting competitive advantage.

Modular photonic platforms as an industrial Trojan horse

Among the calls, the one devoted to modular photonic platforms concentrates a significant share of the funding. This technology, which uses light rather than electricity to process quantum information, presents decisive industrial advantages: operation at room temperature, compatibility with existing telecom infrastructure, and the possibility of massive miniaturization.

Europe already has assets in this field. The European photonics ecosystem, with players like Infinera in the Netherlands or STMicroelectronics in France, can rely on an existing industrial base to develop photonic quantum components. Unlike superconducting approaches that require temperatures close to absolute zero and entirely new infrastructure.

This photonic strategy also allows Europe to partially circumvent dependence on advanced semiconductors. While IBM and Google’s superconducting quantum processors require chips engraved at 7 or 5 nanometers—controlled by TSMC and Samsung—photonic platforms can operate with more mature technologies accessible to European foundries.

The first prototypes of European modular photonic platforms are expected in the coming years. If compatibility testing proves conclusive, Europe could have an independent quantum industrial standard independent of American and Chinese architectures.

The race for European quantum talent intensifies

Standardization is not enough without brainpower. Europe trains a significant number of doctoral students in quantum physics each year, but struggles to retain them: a significant portion of European quantum doctors migrate across the Atlantic in the years following their thesis, attracted by the salaries and resources of American technology giants.

Europe is losing its biotech startups to the United States and Asia, a phenomenon being repeated in quantum. The best European laboratories regularly see their teams poached by IBM Quantum, Microsoft Azure Quantum, or China’s Hefei programs.

The EuroHPC program attempts to reverse this trend by creating researcher-entrepreneur positions, part-academic part-industrial, funded over several years to develop quantum standards while creating spin-offs. A formula inspired by the success of European ERC grants, which have allowed Europe to retain several Nobel Prize winners in recent years.

The initiative also provides for accelerated exchange programs between member countries. A French doctoral student will be able to spend several months in a German laboratory, then others in Finland, all while working on the same standardized project. The objective: to create a generation of “European” rather than national quantum researchers, capable of navigating between the ecosystems of all member countries.

European industrialists torn between ambition and pragmatism

On the industrial side, reactions remain mixed. Airbus Defence and Space, Thales, and Leonardo support the initiative because it could give them access to quantum technologies for their defense and aerospace applications without depending on American suppliers. A strategic priority after American restrictions on the export of sensitive technologies.

But other players worry about delays. While IBM promises “useful” quantum computers in the coming years with its advanced processors, the European approach privileging interoperability could delay the emergence of commercial applications. A risk that EuroHPC openly acknowledges: “We accept losing time to gain independence,” summarizes its executive director Anders Jensen.

This tension crystallizes around partnerships with American giants. Several European laboratories already collaborate with IBM Quantum Network or AWS Braket to test their algorithms. The EuroHPC initiative requires them to migrate to European platforms in the coming years, even if it means temporarily losing performance.

Some industrialists argue for explicit pragmatism: use American platforms to quickly develop applications, while simultaneously building European autonomy. A dual-track strategy that could allow Europe not to fall completely out of the global quantum race.

2030, a crucial deadline for European quantum sovereignty

The first results of the EuroHPC calls will be known in the coming years. But the strategic horizon is being decided in 2030, when the first large-scale commercial quantum applications should emerge. Three sectors concentrate the stakes: chemical simulation for the pharmaceutical industry, logistics optimization, and post-quantum cryptography.

In pharmaceuticals, Europe has assets with Novartis, Sanofi, and Roche that are investing heavily in quantum molecular simulation. If European standards allow them to interconnect their research with academic laboratories, Europe could maintain its leadership in several therapeutic segments against competition from technology giants developing their own quantum drug discovery platforms.

The cryptographic challenge remains the most sensitive. Quantum algorithms threaten the entirety of current encryption systems. Having independent European quantum standards becomes a question of national security, particularly after revelations about industrial digital espionage. The European Commission estimates the cost of migration to post-quantum cryptography at several billion euros.

Europe’s bet on quantum standards fits into a broader logic of technological sovereignty, after failures in semiconductors and artificial intelligence. The question remains whether current investments and a collaborative approach will be enough against the considerable amounts invested by the United States and China in their national quantum champions.