Science minister George Freeman is today expected to outline new funding and programmes as part of the UK’s £2.5 billion, ten-year quantum advancement plans.

Speaking at the UK National Quantum Technologies Showcase taking place at the London Business Design Centre, Freeman will announce a total of £14 million in funding to support quantum initiatives.

The government says that £10 million will go towards six projects aimed at accelerating the development of components and systems for quantum network technologies to transform the way the UK distributes, secures, and processes information to meet the challenges of an “increasingly complex data economy.”

£4 million will go towards strengthening collaborative research and development through Canada-UK partnerships to develop real-world quantum technologies for commercial use.

Freeman will also announce the National Quantum Computing Centre closing a £30 million competition to provide quantum computing testbeds, alongside a partnership with IBM to provide users cloud access to IBM’s full fleet quantum machines.

Finally, Freeman will announce the launch of a UK Quantum Standards Network Pilot to help to ensure that the UK is at the forefront of establishing global standards for quantum.

“We have identified quantum as one of the five transformational technologies in which the UK is a global leader, which is why we have set out a £2.5 billion 10-year industrial strategy to support the quantum sector here in the UK,” Freeman said. “Quantum is set to transform computing, imaging and sensing, cyber security and position, navigation and timing with major industrial applications from drug discovery to defence, fintech, and much more.”

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