Quantum computing won’t be changing supercomputers in 2026, not to mention reaching industrial scale. And but, investor urge for food for corporations pursuing the elusive quantum advantage hasn’t dwindled — it has elevated.
Quantonation Ventures, a enterprise agency investing in quantum and physics-based startups, has closed its oversubscribed second fund at €220 million, or roughly $260 million. That’s greater than twice the dimensions of its inaugural fund, and comes along with different indicators that the quantum winter isn’t coming but.
Whereas some warned that an excessive amount of quantum hype and never sufficient tangible outcomes would ultimately trigger funding to break down, the alternative has occurred. Take the prediction that quantum will ultimately crack fashionable encryption: that second has no clear timeline, and but governments have joined Large Tech within the race.
Within the years since Quantonation’s launch in 2018, the quantum know-how sector has develop into much less incipient, with each technological breakthroughs and early demand from tutorial and industrial labs. Because of this, there has additionally been “a shift within the varieties of funding alternatives which can be obtainable” to its second fund, Quantonation accomplice Will Zeng advised TechCrunch.
One instance is what Zeng describes because the “picks and shovels” alternative, with corporations growing applied sciences that assist the quantum trade. He cited the instance of Dutch startup Qblox, a long-boostrapped firm that was promoting quantum management {hardware} and software program to Quantonation portfolio corporations earlier than the VC agency co-led its Series A.
This rising ecosystem additionally explains why backers are doubling down on Quantonation, and why different devoted quantum funds reminiscent of QDNL and 55 North have emerged.
“VCs acknowledge that this isn’t a straightforward space to spend money on on the early stage. The know-how could be very particular and sophisticated, the markets are sometimes new, and the groups as nicely,” Zeng mentioned.
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The agency’s thesis is to speculate early to seize extra worth; however a handful of quantum corporations have already gone public, and their shares have surged in latest months. In line with Bloomberg, this “quantum frenzy” is partly stocked by Nvidia, whose CEO Jensen Huang declared in June 2025 that “quantum computing is reaching an inflection level.”
Even though quantum chips have but to outperform classical computer systems outdoors of purpose-built benchmarks, consensus is rising that real-life purposes are only some years away, from life sciences to new supplies. That’s partially because of developments in error correction — the flexibility to repair the errors that quantum programs are susceptible to.
Google’s Willow chip was a landmark for error correction in 2024, however no structure has received but, and smaller gamers are nonetheless within the race. Zeng famous {that a} stunning variety of corporations have entered DARPA’s Quantum Benchmarking Initiative. He additionally believes that past the general public market pleasure, “there are extra thrilling applied sciences which can be at present non-public.”
For Quantonation, these non-public alternatives span a wider canvas than quantum chips alone. Fund two has already invested in 12 startups, with a goal portfolio of round 25, masking not simply the software program and industrial layers wanted to make quantum benefit actual, but in addition adjoining physics-based applied sciences reminiscent of photonics and lasers.
This expanded thesis is backed by traders previous and new. In line with the agency, main traders from its first classic, together with Singapore’s Vertex Holdings and Bpifrance’s Fonds Nationwide d’Amorçage 2, have returned for the second fund, with new restricted companions together with the European Funding Fund, Grupo ACS, Novo Holdings, Planet First Companions, and Toshiba.
Quantonation’s geographic scope is equally worldwide. With twin headquarters in Paris and New York Metropolis, the agency has backed French quantum corporations together with Pasqal and Quandela, but in addition positioned bets in Asia and North America — and can proceed doing so.
“In plenty of the areas we spend money on, there’s not but a transparent regional winner, […] and plenty of the analysis has come from universities in lots of locations,” Zeng mentioned.
