Quantum computing patents
With 32% of the world’s quantum companies and only 6% of global quantum patents, the European Union is currently facing a serious paradox in the field of quantum technology. As a result, the Joint Research Centre (JRC) has made urgent recommendations to give industrialisation and intellectual property protection top priority.
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EU Quantum Paradox: Scientific Excellence Requires Global Market Strategy
The Quantum Paradox: Patents vs Companies
In the worldwide competition for leadership in quantum technology, Europe is at a turning point. Although 32% of the world’s quantum technology companies are located on the continent, which has a robust research and innovation environment, the continent registers a disproportionately low percentage of global patenting, accounting for only 6% of all quantum patents worldwide. This paradox implies that the EU is having difficulty turning its substantial scientific achievements into technologies that can be sold.
This disparity “doesn’t quite add up,” said trainee patent lawyer Korneel Ridderbeek. The European Commission’s Joint Research Centre (JRC) recently released a paper that issues a stark warning on the EU’s stance on patent commercialisation. With its robust ecosystem and substantial investments, the EU is well-positioned, according to the JRC specialists, and it has more quantum technology companies than the US (about 25%) and China (5%). The fact that over half of these businesses were founded since 2018 is encouraging.
However, a stark global disparity is revealed by the scale of these enterprises. While 82% of quantum enterprises in China and 29% in the US are huge, only 13% of quantum companies in Europe are. Given the modest and youthful size of many EU quantum technology enterprises, there is a clear need for assistance in order to scale up.
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The Global IP Race and EU Research Strengths
The EU is well behind its main rivals in the global intellectual property (IP) battle. Even though it only owns 5% of the world’s quantum enterprises, China today controls 46% of all patents worldwide. With 27% of the companies and 23% of the patents, the US comes in second.
The EU is far from falling behind in terms of research quality, even while there is a deficiency in total quantum patents. In terms of research on quantum computing and quantum key distribution, the EU is ranked second in the world. Additionally, Europe is the leader in a number of important fields, such as research on nitrogen vacancy, cold atom interferometry, and post-quantum cryptography. Europe holds a good third place in the field of Rydberg atoms.
Large sums of money have been invested in the field; between 2012 and 2024, the European Commission invested over €2 billion in quantum technology, with additional funding coming from private venture capital and Member States. In Europe alone, more than €2 billion was allocated for quantum research and development this year. Globally, private venture capital has invested about €6 billion in quantum technology.
How much of this investment will effectively result in valuable, protected innovations is still the key question. The JRC cautions that someone else and not always from within the EU will convert this investment into patents if the EU does not.
The JRC highlights the urgent need to establish a clear industrialisation roadmap in order to close this crucial gap and unlock the economic potential of Europe’s superior scientific capabilities. Reports state that this disparity can be partially attributed to elements like dispersed public spending and the lack of a targeted industrial policy intended to help businesses grow.
A Call for Industrialization and Focused Policy
There is an urgent need for a coordinated approach to address the problems caused by dispersed funding. One of the main obstacles keeping the quantum sector from realising its full potential is the fragmentation of EU public investments.
Moving to higher technology readiness levels necessitates selection, concentration, and teamwork, even though promoting a wide range of techniques is advantageous at the research and early-stage development level. Reorienting EU quantum efforts, which are currently dispersed across multiple applications and frequently have limited funding, is the urgent challenge in order to meet industrial goals.
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The JRC report listed many crucial strategic directions to bridge the gap:
- Deliberate IP Protection: The EU has to be more thoughtful about how it safeguards its inventions. The most important initial step in making sure the technology works well in the actual world is protecting what has been produced.
- Attracting Private Investment: Public money alone is not enough to scale scientific discoveries; private investment is necessary. To transform fragmented research into technology that is ready for the market, private finance and supporting intellectual property (IP) are required.
- Leading Standardisation: International acceptance and technological maturity depend on global standards, which are now absent. Europe ought to be in charge of establishing these international norms.
Scaling Up, Talent, and Global Cooperation
A more targeted EU industrial policy is suggested to help the many small and emerging EU quantum enterprises. The goal of this strategy is to assist them in expanding their operations, hiring qualified personnel, and building the infrastructure they require.
Additionally, it is crucial to develop the international component. The JRC report’s authors stress the value of global collaboration, especially by taking advantage of the EU’s current willingness to engage in cooperative patenting. Co-patenting with non-EU partners mostly from the United States occurs in about 23% of EU patent applications at the moment.
In terms of standardisation, the EU is likewise in a crucial position. Due to its active engagement with quantum technology committees in the European Committee for Standardisation, European Committee for Electrotechnical Standardisation, and European Telecommunications Standards Institute, the EU has a strong bargaining position. In the future, promoting unique international norms and protecting EU business will be vital.
Quantum technologies will transform communication, processing, and sensing in cybersecurity, defence, medical imaging, archaeology, and navigation. Due to its revolutionary potential, quantum technology is vital to EU industrial competitiveness and economic security.
The EU must vigorously convert its top-notch research into marketable goods and services that cater to actual use cases in order to stay competitive and spur more advancement. Adopted in July, the European Commission’s Quantum Strategy aspires to make Europe a quantum powerhouse that can drive startup growth and transform cutting-edge science into useful commercial applications.
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