Quantum
Quantum technologies are emerging as a key subject of global power competition due to their potential military applications and ability to fundamentally transform people’s lives. Quantum effects can overcome limitations of digital technologies, solve computational problems that take impossibly long using traditional computers and transmit information over long distances without the risk of being intercepted. China hopes quantum technologies will allow it to leapfrog Western rivals.
China and the US are locked in a tight race for supremacy in quantum technologies. Through sustained government investment, China has achieved a number of firsts, including developing and launching the first quantum satellite, Micius.
While China has so far led in quantum communication, which enables secure communication over long distances, the US still leads in quantum computation.
China’s quantum technology development is a major result of mission-driven innovation. In the US, private companies like IBM dominate the race. So far at least, Chinese quantum technology companies and researchers have relied on government funding. Instead of large digital companies, startups founded by people with university affiliations, and usually funded by local or central government funds, dominate the landscape.
Quantum technologies are also a major area of international collaboration. Micius, the quantum satellite, was developed in cooperation with the University of Vienna, with future communication tests taking place between China and Russia. Many quantum technologies are still far from being market-ready but could provide decisive advantages to a military using them. As such, quantum research is at the forefront of discussions about research security in Europe.
At a glance
Quantum technologies are concentrated in Hefei, Anhui. Professor of Physics Pan Jian-Wei at the University of Science and Technology of China in Hefei is at the center of quantum technology development. He earned his PhD in Vienna and did a postdoc in Heidelberg before moving to Hefei to build a government-funded lab.
Since 2022, China-affiliated authors have published more quantum papers than US-affiliated ones. Quantum technologies is still a highly international field, with many European countries also publishing significant papers. Germany is over-represented for its size, reflecting the world-class academic research taking place in Germany in quantum technologies.
The Chinese Academy of ICT (CAICT), a think tank under the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, published a quantum technology report in December 2023 stating that the US still leads China in many indicators. Despite a solid research basis in quantum computing, CAICT said China must improve research commercialization, company development and industrial roll-out. Dependence on foreign technology was a key indicator.
Quantum in China: Timeline of crucial events
Development
Policy/regulation
China and Russia successfully establish quantum communication over a distance of 3800 km, using China's quantum satellite. Earlier experiments had been conducted with Austria.
Origin Quantum presents the 24-qubit quantum computer Wukon. Some of the machines used to create it are reportedly German.
China’s dedicated technical commission on quantum standards (TC578) issues its first national standard in quantum communication.
Origin Quantum becomes China’s first unicorn (startup worth more than USD 1 billion) in quantum technology. Its founders came from the Chinese Academy of Science in Hefei.
Researchers at the University of Science and Technology (USTC) in Hefei claim their photonic quantum computer Jiuzhang, using 76 photons, beats traditional computers (quantum supremacy).
The US adds 22 Chinese organizations and firms to its Entity List, including Origin Quantum, USTC, and several CAS institutes. They can no longer import US-made technology.
The MIIT issues “Implementation opinions for future industries,” detailing goals for quantum computing.
China launches its second quantum satellite, Jinan 1, a successor to Micius, the first quantum satellite in the world. These satellites allow secure communication over long distances.
The US adds QuantumCTek to its Entity List of trade-restricted companies, cutting off access to key US technology.
First A-listing of a quantum firm in China at the Shanghai Stock Exchange. The firm, QuantumCTek, offers quantum key distribution services for secure communications.
Key developments
Tech progress
- Domestic dilution chiller ez-Q Fridge was delivered to a customer. The fridge is the country's first commercially available mass dilution chiller required to make a superconducting quantum computer. (Source (CN): People’s Daily)
Domestic dynamics
- The China Quantum Computing Industry Summit in Guangzhou brought together over 100 key players to discuss partnerships, ecosystem development, and talent growth. Guangdong Guoteng and China Unicom launched the "Tianji" Quantum Security Service Platform. (Source (CN): S&T Daily)
- Researchers (including Pan Jianwei) at the University of Science and Technology of China have built a cold-atom quantum simulator that confirmed the antiferromagnetic phase transition in the Fermi-Hubbard model, for the first time surpassing classical computing capabilities. (Source (CN): S&T Daily)
Foreign involvement
- The US Commerce Department added China’s major entities engaged in quantum research and development to its Entity List for acquiring or attempting to acquire US-origin items to enhance the PRC's quantum capabilities. (Source (EN): Bureau of Industry & Security)
- On June 17, China’s “Original Wukong” superconducting quantum computer was reported to have surpassed 10 million global visits and to have completed 236,000 quantum tasks. This achievement is seen as an indicator for China’s progress (Source (CN): S&T Daily)
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