Jonathan Legh-Smith, Executive Director of UKQuantum, considers the capabilities of quantum technology and how to establish the UK as a quantum superpower.
Providing a platform for its 50-strong network of members, UKQuantum supports the entire quantum ecosystem, spanning computing, sensing and communications. Members of the consortium range from early-stage startups to large end-users, with all benefiting from the national and global engagement that UKQuantum strives to offer.
The UK is ten years into its National Quantum Technology Programme, which has established the country as a pioneering force in the development of quantum technology. Entering the next decade of this strategy, attention must focus on maintaining this energy and preparing for the introduction of quantum into our daily lives.
To find out more, Maddie Hall, Editor of The Innovation Platform, spoke with Jonathan Legh-Smith to gain insights into the exciting potential for quantum in the UK.
Can you summarise UKQuantum, your role and the consortium’s objectives?
UKQuantum champions the UK’s quantum industry. Supporting over 50 members, the consortium is global, with our members including several international companies. UKQuantum is driven by the belief that quantum is ultimately a global market. End-users are global, meaning companies, products, and services must aim to fit within global supply chains. Equally, we strive to promote the UK’s national interests; therefore, membership requires a substantial commitment to the UK’s quantum ecosystem in some form – whether that be a UK office, collaboration, or academic contribution.
As Executive Director, I am responsible for overall strategy, engaging with the government, and any necessary outbound engagements associated with supporting members. UKQuantum’s mission is firstly to unite the UK quantum industry and give it a voice. The UK is well-regarded as having a tight, close-knit quantum technology ecosystem, incorporating industry, academia and government. We aim to ensure that the industry sector presents a unanimous and coherent stance to the government, enabling them to establish the appropriate policies and mechanisms to best support the industry.
UKQuantum is also dedicated to international engagement and is keen to work with the government to ensure it supports the UK system within the context of the global industry. Not only do we advocate for quantum, but we also advocate for the UK specifically, promoting the UK’s potential to be a global quantum technology leader, both regarding its development as well as its commercialisation.
Similarly, we promote the adoption of quantum within the UK. While it is significant to house world-leading companies, and we want UK companies to be successful, the UK benefits most when the economy as a whole is prospering. UKQuantum promotes widespread uptake of quantum technology and recognises the value of international collaboration in supplying the UK with a variety of technologies that will then boost the economy.
Why is quantum such a vital and exciting sector?
Words such as computing, sensing, and communications sound traditional, but harnessing quantum unlocks a new class of technologies in each sector. Computers perform their calculations in binary, and in a classical computer, it’s the on/off of voltage on a circuit that represents the binary digits of zero and one (shortened to ‘bit’ in computing). Quantum computers work differently. They exploit an atomic-level property called superposition, where a particle has a probability of being in one of two different states. This means each individual particle can be used to implement a two-dimensional vector (<the probability of being 1>, <the probability of being 0>) rather than a single binary digit. Called a qubit – a quantum binary digit – this representation of data could enable unprecedented computational power and efficiency.
The opportunities for quantum computing go far beyond computing. Quantum systems are so fragile that minor disturbances can upset them. While this is a drawback in the realm of quantum computing, it can be leveraged to enable new types of devices. For example, new sensing devices in healthcare can monitor brain activity or detect early signs of wound infection. The ability to detect cables and ducts, tunnels or faults underground would make a material difference to infrastructure companies, increasing efficiency by reducing the funding and workforce normally required. Detecting small gas leakages can help manage climate emissions. More accurate clocks and timing systems for navigation and positioning systems could offer an alternative to satellite-based GPS systems.
In cyber-security, new forms of cryptography (post-quantum cryptography) and new mechanisms for distributing cryptographic keys (quantum key distribution) are essential to protect us as and when full-scale, fully fault-tolerant quantum computers come to fruition.
How does UKQuantum foster an environment of innovation in the field of quantum technologies?
Our close relationships with regulatory and academic bodies are a significant factor in fostering innovation in the field. As a community, we are committed to a national quantum programme, with our role being to convene industry around the key questions asked by the government or provide them with consolidated evidence to confidently establish plans instead of relying on a vocal few. Our work aims to assume that the plans put in place are right in the long term.
UKQuantum also provides a platform for members to have input on industry regulation. For example, an independent expert committee, the Regulatory Horizons Council, was established to identify the possible consequences of technological innovation. The Department of Science, Innovation, and Technology (DSIT) has commissioned the RHC to provide a report on quantum. UKQuantum members were able to review and provide input on the report, which has just been published.
Investment is another critical branch of continued quantum innovation. Many in the industry are startups or startups looking to scale up. Quantum is a long-term, deep-tech area requiring significant extended investment. There is discussion around whether the UK has a suitable investment landscape to support long-term innovation and scale-up of UK companies. It is a discussion UKQuantum members are actively engaged in, and we have contributed directly to DSIT on this subject and offered their experiences and opinions.
Working Groups
UKQuantum’s Working Groups are geared towards advancing the policy and strategy of the quantum industry. These are dedicated to: Policy and national strategy, international collaborations, standards, skills, and supply chain analysis and roadmapping. Supply chain analysis aims to understand how the quantum supply chain intersects with others and how different end users might incorporate technology.
Standards are highly important to end-user industries and are a factor that quantum businesses must begin to consider. Although it is arguably early for businesses to consider standards, UKQuantum intends to create an environment immediately ready for use when they want to engage.
The UKQuantum Standards pilot is one way in which this environment will be created, convened by the National Physical Laboratory (NPL) with BSI and in partnership with UKQuantum. This intends to provide a forum for quantum businesses and a channel to communicate their views and contribute to developing standardisation and best practice policies.
Can you discuss any upcoming projects or initiatives at UKQuantum that you’re particularly excited about?
Responsible innovation in quantum is essential in ensuring trust in the technologies and support for the industry. UKQuantum is collaborating with the National Quantum Computing Centre (NQCC) and TechUK to establish guiding principles for responsible innovation in quantum, drawing upon the experiences of its members and recent lessons from Artificial Intelligence (AI).
Over the coming months, UKQuantum’s objective is to provide guidelines to quantum companies on how they can adopt and implement the principles of responsible innovation. There is also a focus on the practicalities specifically for small businesses, lowering the barriers for those keen to engage but lacking the knowledge or resources.
The new UK Quantum Missions are a critical component of the UK’s National Quantum Strategy. The industry was involved in shaping the five missions and is continuing to engage in the planning phase.
Can quantum innovation be used to help solve global challenges such as climate change or healthcare issues?
Quantum technology will be a vital weapon in our armoury when it comes to tackling these global problems, but it will be part of a broader solution.
The potential of quantum technology in the fight against climate change is huge but still to be realised. Quantum sensing offers unprecedented precision in detecting subtle changes in environmental parameters such as temperature, humidity, and pollutant levels. Additionally, it allows for the real-time monitoring of ecosystems and emissions, enabling timely intervention in the case of leakages. By harnessing the flipside of the properties of quantum systems, we unlock the power to identify underground spaces into which we can pump carbon dioxide as part of carbon capture and sequestration.
Quantum computers could also excel at simulations, enabling the understanding of complex molecular interactions and then employing this knowledge in the development of emissions-reducing technologies, for example, methane mitigation.
The addition of quantum technology to drug design and discovery could dramatically enhance efficiency. Traditional drug discovery involves screening potential molecules and predicting their biological activity. This is an incredibly time-consuming task with vast amounts of data since much of the work is in tackling a variety of possibilities that might work and sifting through to narrow them down.
Quantum computing algorithms can transform drug design into an optimisation problem, simulating molecular structures, properties, and reactivity more effectively than classical computers and handling interactions on an atomic level. Quantum algorithms identify molecules with desired properties incredibly quickly, which could exponentially enhance efficiency within the drug discovery sector, allowing scientists to invest time and effort into only the most promising potential drugs.
What are the infrastructure and legislation requirements for advancing quantum innovation, and how are these being met?
One of the key outcomes recommended by the aforementioned Regulatory Horizons Council report is that regulation should be approached from an end-user perspective. Rather than creating a new set of regulations, we should consider where quantum technology could be employed and tailor existing regulations. Telecoms, civil aviation, and transport have established regulatory environments with sections specifically relating to existing technology.
A sensible approach would be to consider these existing restrictions and use them to advise quantum regulations. For example, quantum computing may be used to process personal data, leading to concerns over privacy. Instead of starting with the raw technology, we examine existing privacy and personal data regulations to determine if there is any reason these should not apply to quantum. Consequently, we are able to identify gaps in existing legislation and tackle those specifically, avoiding an overhaul of existing legislation.
Additionally, a primary objective of advancing quantum innovation must be equitable access. Given the promise of quantum technology in areas such as healthcare and drug discovery, it is crucial that access is not restricted. To prevent this, we must ensure that the appropriate infrastructure to support quantum is in place nationwide and equally affordable.
What is the potential for quantum computing and technology in the next ten years and beyond? What is the role of UKQuantum in shaping this future?
Now, ten years into the National Quantum Technology Programme, the UK is firmly established on the quantum stage. The programme has been an extraordinary success, setting the science and the first steps of commercialisation in motion, producing new companies, supporting those companies, and engaging with end-users. This is a huge feat and is a testament to the strength of the UK’s research and innovation ecosystem.
Ten years from now, we hope to have unlocked the benefits of quantum computing and see them become fully fault-tolerant. This is primarily an engineering challenge, which, given the amount of intellectual power and financial resources, is likely achievable. In the intervening time, we would ideally see clear demonstrations of the intermediate value, recognising and promoting the value of those near-term quantum computers. Additionally, we can expect to see new classes of quantum sensing devices employed in positioning, navigation and timing.
We must also prepare for the dangers associated with quantum computers. Data is being harvested already, and quantum will provide the capabilities to decrypt this personal data completely, meaning it is essential we develop and deploy adequate legislation and technology in the coming years to defend against the threat.
To both combat this threat and establish the infrastructure capable of supporting quantum, clear roadmaps for the next ten years and beyond are required. Waiting until quantum technology is available will be too late to work out new processes or strategies and will set the UK back in its position.
To continue in its leadership position, the UK must maintain the energy of the last decade. The next phase of the UK’s quantum strategy has seen a commitment of £2.5bn, and the appropriate plans and objectives must accompany it. Businesses and governments must now set out clear roadmaps for when they intend to incorporate these technologies. UKQuantum will continue in its endeavour to support and promote quantum technologies. By communicating and collaborating with academia, industry, and policymakers, UKQuantum will remain a coherent voice for the quantum industry as it enters a new phase and help realise a quantum future with the UK at the helm.
Please note, this article will also appear in the seventeenth edition of our quarterly publication.
