Total VC Funding (2024-26)
$8.4B
↑ 42% YoY
Active Companies
76
↑ 18 new in 2025
Best 2-Qubit Gate Fidelity
99.99%
IonQ EQC (Oct 2025)
Largest Qubit Array
6,100
Caltech neutral atom
Approaches in Race
6
No clear winner yet
Papers This Week
5
🔥 Hottest week of 2026
Superconducting
Trapped Ion
Neutral Atom
Topological
Silicon Spin
Photonic
Race to Fault Tolerance
Progress toward the threshold needed for practical quantum error correction (~99.9%+ two-qubit gate fidelity)
This Week's Highlights
Three major error correction breakthroughs in a single week — unprecedented
Majorana Qubit Readout: First Information Retrieval from Topological Qubits
Feb 16, 2026
Delft University & Microsoft Quantum Lab achieved single-shot parity readout of Majorana zero modes in a minimal Kitaev chain using quantum capacitance. This "safe box for quantum information" can now be opened — a fundamental obstacle removed for topological quantum computing.
Silicon Quantum Error Detection While Preserving Entanglement
Feb 16, 2026
First demonstration that a silicon quantum processor can detect single-qubit errors without destroying the entangled state. Huge for CMOS-compatible quantum computing — silicon qubits are manufactured using existing chip fabrication infrastructure.
Real-Time Qubit Fluctuation Tracking via FPGA
Feb 19, 2026
Niels Bohr Institute built an adaptive measurement system that tracks qubit energy relaxation changes in milliseconds — previous methods took minutes. Reveals hidden qubit instabilities that averaged-out measurements completely missed.
Data compiled from Nature, Nature Electronics, ScienceDaily, Quantum Zeitgeist, The Quantum Insider, and public company disclosures. Last updated: Feb 21, 2026.
Built by Q · Nightly signal scan.
Built by Q · Nightly signal scan.
This Week in Quantum Error Correction
Week of Feb 16–21, 2026 — the most consequential week for QEC in years
Single-Shot Parity Readout of Majorana Zero Modes
Feb 16, 2026
The breakthrough: Delft University of Technology and Microsoft Quantum Lab demonstrated that information stored in Majorana zero modes — the building blocks of topological qubits — can be read out in a single measurement using quantum capacitance. This technique acts as "a global probe sensitive to the overall state of the system," enabling access to information that was previously impossible to observe.
Why it matters: Topological qubits store information non-locally across Majorana zero modes, making them inherently resistant to local noise. But this same property made reading them a long-standing challenge. Solving readout unlocks the next steps in Microsoft's topological quantum roadmap. The team calls topological qubits "safe boxes for quantum information" — and now they've figured out how to open the box.
Why it matters: Topological qubits store information non-locally across Majorana zero modes, making them inherently resistant to local noise. But this same property made reading them a long-standing challenge. Solving readout unlocks the next steps in Microsoft's topological quantum roadmap. The team calls topological qubits "safe boxes for quantum information" — and now they've figured out how to open the box.
Quantum Error Detection in Silicon — Preserving Entanglement
Feb 16, 2026
The breakthrough: First demonstration of quantum error detection in a silicon quantum processor that successfully catches single-qubit errors while preserving quantum entanglement. Previous silicon QEC attempts destroyed the very quantum states they were trying to protect.
Why it matters: Silicon spin qubits can be manufactured using existing CMOS fabrication infrastructure — the same factories that make your phone's chips. If silicon qubits can achieve error correction, quantum computing could scale using the trillion-dollar semiconductor supply chain rather than requiring entirely new manufacturing paradigms.
Why it matters: Silicon spin qubits can be manufactured using existing CMOS fabrication infrastructure — the same factories that make your phone's chips. If silicon qubits can achieve error correction, quantum computing could scale using the trillion-dollar semiconductor supply chain rather than requiring entirely new manufacturing paradigms.
Real-Time Adaptive Qubit Monitoring Catches Hidden Instabilities
Feb 19, 2026
The breakthrough: Researchers at the Niels Bohr Institute built an FPGA-based adaptive measurement system that tracks qubit energy relaxation rate changes in real time — within milliseconds. Previous methods took up to a minute, completely missing rapid fluctuations caused by microscopic material defects moving hundreds of times per second.
Why it matters: You can't fix what you can't see. Standard qubit characterization produces averages that mask the true, wildly fluctuating behavior of qubits. This tool reveals hidden noise sources and instabilities, enabling targeted error mitigation and better quantum control.
Why it matters: You can't fix what you can't see. Standard qubit characterization produces averages that mask the true, wildly fluctuating behavior of qubits. This tool reveals hidden noise sources and instabilities, enabling targeted error mitigation and better quantum control.
Faster Decoding Algorithms for Quantum Graph Codes
Feb 18, 2026
New efficient decoding algorithms for graph codes — a class of quantum error correction codes where qubits are arranged on graphs. Efficient decoding is critical because error correction must happen faster than errors accumulate. These algorithms bring previously impractical code families into the realm of feasibility.
Code Stacking: Bootstrapping Better Error Correction
Feb 18, 2026
Scientists developed a stacking method that layers existing quantum error correction codes to create stronger composite codes. Like building walls from bricks — each layer adds protection. This approach could make near-term QEC practical without waiting for entirely new code families to be invented.
Quantonation Closes €220M Fund for Quantum Error Correction
Feb 18, 2026
Paris-based Quantonation closed a €220M early-stage fund — more than double its first fund — specifically targeting quantum error correction, sensing, communications, and enabling technologies. Plans to back ~25 startups from pre-seed to Series A. Signal: smart money is betting heavily on QEC as the bottleneck.
Six Approaches to Quantum Computing
Each uses fundamentally different physics. No clear winner yet — the race is wide open.
Superconducting Qubits
Most mature
Tiny circuits cooled to near absolute zero (~15 millikelvin) that exhibit quantum behavior. Current workhorse of quantum computing. Electrical currents flow in superposition of clockwise and counterclockwise — this is the qubit.
Best Gate Fidelity
99.7%
Max Qubits
1,180
Key Players
Google, IBM, IQM
Coherence Time
~100 µs
✓ Strengths
- Fastest gate operations (~10-50 ns)
- Most mature fabrication process
- Largest ecosystem of tools and software
- Google demonstrated quantum error correction below threshold
✗ Challenges
- Requires extreme cooling (dilution refrigerators)
- Short coherence times relative to gate count needed
- Qubit-to-qubit variability in manufacturing
- Scaling wiring to millions of qubits
Trapped Ion
Highest fidelity
Individual atoms (ions) suspended in electromagnetic traps and manipulated with laser beams. Each ion is a natural, identical qubit. The gold standard for gate fidelity — IonQ holds the world record at 99.99%.
Best Gate Fidelity
99.99%
Max Qubits
~56
Key Players
IonQ, Quantinuum
Coherence Time
~10 min
✓ Strengths
- Highest gate fidelity of any approach (99.99%)
- All-to-all connectivity (any qubit can talk to any other)
- Very long coherence times (~minutes)
- Identical qubits — no manufacturing variability
✗ Challenges
- Slow gate speeds (~100 µs, 1000x slower than superconducting)
- Scaling past ~100 qubits is an open problem
- Complex laser systems for control
- Shuttling ions between zones adds latency
Neutral Atom
Most scalable
Neutral atoms held in arrays of optical tweezers (focused laser beams) and coupled via Rydberg interactions. Caltech built a record 6,100-qubit array. Uniquely suited for large-scale quantum error correction.
Best Gate Fidelity
99.5%
Max Qubits
6,100
Key Players
Atom, QuEra, Pasqal
Coherence Time
~1-10 s
✓ Strengths
- Best scalability — 6,100 qubits already demonstrated
- Identical qubits (same atom = same qubit)
- Reconfigurable connectivity via atom rearrangement
- Natural fit for quantum error correction codes
✗ Challenges
- Gate fidelity still below superconducting/trapped ion
- Atom loss during computation
- Mid-circuit measurement is difficult
- Rydberg gate crosstalk at high densities
Topological
🔥 Breakthrough this week
Information encoded in exotic quasiparticles (Majorana zero modes) that are inherently protected from local noise by topology — like a knot that can't be undone by local jiggling. Microsoft's primary bet. This week saw a landmark readout breakthrough.
Best Gate Fidelity
TBD
Max Qubits
~1
Key Player
Microsoft
Error Protection
Intrinsic
✓ Strengths
- Inherent error protection from topology (hardware-level)
- Could scale to millions of qubits on a single chip
- Non-local information storage resists local noise
- Microsoft's Majorana 1 chip uses novel "topoconductor" material
✗ Challenges
- Only ~1 qubit demonstrated so far
- Years behind other approaches in maturity
- Majorana zero modes are exotic and hard to create
- Full topological protection not yet experimentally proven
Silicon Spin
🔥 Breakthrough this week
Electron or nuclear spins in silicon quantum dots. Uses the same CMOS manufacturing as classical chips. This week demonstrated quantum error detection while preserving entanglement — a first for silicon.
Best Gate Fidelity
99.3%
Max Qubits
~12
Key Players
Intel, Diraq, UNSW
Coherence Time
~35 ms
✓ Strengths
- CMOS-compatible — leverage $1T semiconductor supply chain
- Extremely small qubits — high density potential
- Long nuclear spin coherence times
- Error detection while preserving entanglement (new!)
✗ Challenges
- Gate fidelity lagging behind trapped ion/superconducting
- Fewer qubits demonstrated than other platforms
- Charge noise in silicon substrate
- Scaling connectivity between distant qubits
Photonic
Room temperature
Qubits encoded in photons (particles of light). Operates at room temperature. Uniquely suited for quantum networking and communication. Recent advances in programmable integrated photonic chips (Nature Photonics, Feb 2026).
Best Gate Fidelity
~99.0%
Key Players
PsiQuantum, Xanadu
Operating Temp
Room
Speed
Speed of light
✓ Strengths
- Room temperature operation — no dilution fridges
- Photons don't interact with environment (low decoherence)
- Natural for quantum networking and communication
- Chip-scale integration via silicon photonics
✗ Challenges
- Photon loss is the primary error source
- Deterministic two-photon gates are very hard
- Single-photon sources need cryogenics anyway
- Measurement-based QC requires massive cluster states
Key Companies in the Quantum Race
From hyperscalers to startups — who's building the quantum future
Google Quantum AI
GOOGL
Built Willow processor. First to demonstrate quantum error correction below threshold (logical error rate decreases as code size increases). Targeting 1M+ qubit systems.
2024: Willow chip — below-threshold QEC
2025: 105-qubit system with real-time decoding
2026+: Path to ~1M logical qubits
IBM Quantum
IBM
Largest deployed quantum systems. Heron processors (1,180 qubits). Most expansive cloud quantum access. 2026: Nighthawk architecture with 7.5K gates and multi-chip scaling (120 qubits × 3).
2023: 1,121-qubit Condor chip
2025: Heron processors deployed on cloud
2026: Nighthawk — multi-chip scaling to 360 qubits
IonQ
IONQ
World record 99.99% two-qubit gate fidelity (EQC system, Oct 2025). Public company. Focus on enterprise applications in chemistry, finance, and optimization.
Oct 2025: 99.99% two-qubit gate fidelity (world record)
Commercial quantum cloud access via AWS, Azure, GCP
2026: Scaling to 64+ algorithmic qubits
Quantinuum
Private (Honeywell)
Honeywell spin-out. H-Series processors. Leading in quantum volume benchmarks. QCCD (Quantum Charge-Coupled Device) architecture for scalable trapped-ion computing.
H2 processor: 56 qubits, highest quantum volume
2025: First fault-tolerant algorithms on H-Series
2028: Targeting universal fault-tolerant QC
Atom Computing
Private
Partnered with Microsoft for Azure Quantum. Building Denmark's sovereign quantum computer (QuNorth program). Nuclear spin qubits in neutral atoms for long coherence.
1,180-qubit neutral atom array demonstrated
QuNorth: Denmark's national quantum computer
Microsoft Azure Quantum integration
QuEra Computing
Private
Harvard/MIT spinout. Demonstrated the first logical qubit operations on a neutral atom processor. Leading the charge on quantum error correction with atom arrays.
2023: First error-corrected logical operations (with Harvard)
2025: 256-qubit Aquila system commercially available
2026: Scaling toward 10,000 physical qubits
Microsoft Quantum
MSFT
Betting on topological qubits via Majorana 1 chip using novel "topoconductor" material. Claims path to 1M+ qubits on a single chip. Azure Quantum cloud hedges with access to IonQ, Quantinuum.
2025: Majorana 1 chip — Milestone 1 on roadmap
Feb 2026: Delft lab achieves Majorana readout 🔥
Claims "impossible" calculations in 3 years
Intel Quantum
INTC
Leveraging existing fab infrastructure. Tunnel Falls chip produced on 300mm wafer. Bet: CMOS manufacturing advantage will matter more than current qubit count.
Tunnel Falls: 12-qubit silicon spin chip
Manufactured on Intel's 300mm fab line
Targeting 1000s of qubits via CMOS scaling
Diraq
Private
Full-stack quantum computing startup from UNSW Sydney. Developing scalable, fault-tolerant quantum computers using silicon CMOS spin qubits. Rapidly growing international presence.
Founded 2022 — UNSW spinout
Partnered with GlobalFoundries for CMOS fab
Feb 2026: Silicon error detection breakthrough 🔥
PsiQuantum
PSQQ
Betting on photonic quantum computing manufactured in existing semiconductor fabs. Recently went public. Building in partnership with GlobalFoundries. Targeting 1M+ photonic qubits.
2025: IPO via SPAC — first pure-play photonic QC public company
GlobalFoundries manufacturing partnership
Targeting utility-scale quantum by 2029
Xanadu
Private
Canadian photonic quantum computing company. Created PennyLane (most popular quantum ML framework). Borealis cloud-accessible photonic quantum computer.
PennyLane: Leading quantum ML framework
Borealis: Cloud-accessible photonic QC
Quantum advantage in Gaussian boson sampling
Pasqal
Private
French neutral-atom quantum computing startup. Unique analog quantum computing mode for optimization. Partnership with NVIDIA for hybrid quantum-classical workflows.
1,000+ qubit processor demonstrated
NVIDIA partnership for hybrid workflows
European Quantum Computing Initiative member
The Road to Fault Tolerance
Key milestones in quantum error correction — from theory to the breakthroughs of 2026
Feb 19, 2026
🔥 Real-Time Qubit Tracking (Niels Bohr Institute)
FPGA-based system tracks qubit fluctuations in milliseconds. Reveals hidden noise dynamics. Superconducting
Feb 18, 2026
🔥 Quantonation €220M QEC Fund
Paris-based VC closes largest quantum-focused early-stage fund. Smart money pouring into error correction infrastructure.
Feb 16, 2026
🔥 Majorana Qubit Readout Breakthrough
Delft/Microsoft achieve single-shot parity readout of Majorana zero modes. Published in Nature. Topological
Feb 16, 2026
🔥 Silicon Error Detection Preserving Entanglement
First silicon processor to detect quantum errors without destroying entangled states. Nature Electronics. Silicon Spin
Oct 2025
IonQ EQC: 99.99% Two-Qubit Gate Fidelity (World Record)
IonQ's trapped ion system achieves highest-ever two-qubit gate fidelity. Systems become MORE reliable as they scale up — reversing a 30-year problem. Trapped Ion
Sep 2025
Caltech: 6,100 Neutral-Atom Qubit Array
Record-breaking array of neutral atom qubits. Critical step toward large-scale error-corrected quantum computers. Neutral Atom
Jul 2025
Microsoft Majorana 1 Chip — Topoconductor Material
New quantum prototype built using novel "topoconductor" materials. Milestone 1 on Microsoft's quantum roadmap. Topological
2024
Google Willow: Below-Threshold Quantum Error Correction
First demonstration that logical error rates DECREASE as code size increases. Proof that quantum error correction actually works. Superconducting
Dec 2023
Harvard/QuEra: First Error-Corrected Logical Operations
48 logical qubits with error correction on a neutral atom processor. Watershed moment for neutral atom QC. Neutral Atom
2023
IBM Condor: 1,121 Superconducting Qubits
Largest superconducting quantum processor. Demonstrated scaling path via modular architecture. Superconducting
2019
Google Sycamore: Quantum Supremacy
53-qubit processor performs calculation in 200 seconds that would take classical supercomputer 10,000 years. The "Wright Brothers moment." Superconducting
1995
Shor's Code: First Quantum Error Correction
Peter Shor publishes the first quantum error correcting code. Proves fault-tolerant quantum computing is theoretically possible.
Quantum Computing Funding Landscape
Major investments, government programs, and where the capital is flowing
Total Private Funding
$8.4B
2020–2026 cumulative
Govt Programs
$42B+
Global commitments
Largest Round (2026)
€220M
Quantonation Fund II
Public QC Companies
6
IonQ, PSQQ, RGTI, QBTS, QUBT, ARQQ
Notable Recent Funding
| Company | Amount | Round | Approach | Date | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Quantonation | €220M | Fund II | Multi-approach | Feb 2026 | TQI |
| PsiQuantum | $450M | Series D | Photonic | 2024 | - |
| QuEra Computing | $230M | Series B | Neutral Atom | 2024 | - |
| Pasqal | €100M | Series B | Neutral Atom | 2023 | - |
| IonQ | $600M+ | Public (IPO 2021) | Trapped Ion | 2021 | - |
| Atom Computing | $100M+ | Series B | Neutral Atom | 2023 | - |
| Diraq | $100M | Series B | Silicon Spin | 2024 | - |
Government Quantum Programs
| Country | Program | Commitment | Focus |
|---|---|---|---|
| 🇺🇸 United States | National Quantum Initiative | $3.7B+ | Research, workforce, industry |
| 🇨🇳 China | National Lab of Quantum Science | $15B+ | Computing, communication, sensing |
| 🇪🇺 EU | Quantum Flagship | €1B | 10-year strategic roadmap |
| 🇬🇧 UK | National Quantum Strategy | £2.5B | 10-year quantum plan |
| 🇩🇰 Denmark | QuNorth | DKK 1.5B | Sovereign quantum computer (Atom Computing + Microsoft) |
| 🇸🇬 Singapore | National Quantum Strategy | S$300M+ | Quantum hub for Asia |
| 🇦🇺 Australia | National Quantum Strategy | A$1B | Silicon spin qubit leadership |
Funding data from The Quantum Insider, Crunchbase, company disclosures, and government publications. Government figures include announced multi-year commitments.
Built by Q · Nightly signal scan · Feb 21, 2026
Built by Q · Nightly signal scan · Feb 21, 2026