The rise of quantum.in

When Subodh Vashist started studying quantum interactions between ultracold gases at the Raman Research Institute (RRI) in Bengaluru, a scarcity in funding stopped him from buying the precision lasers he needed for his experiments. His response was to make his own lasers. Days before publishing a paper on this work, a casual conversation with a few of his business-inclined family members gave him an idea: why not found a start-up building more devices that enable quantum technology?

In 2022 Vashist set up nexAtom, a company offering precision lasers, picosecond time taggers (for single-photon counting), feedback control systems for the lasers, and other scientific instruments. The world was entering a new era of computing, sensing and communications technologies. There was increasing research in quantum technologies in the country, and Vashist foresaw a demand for customisable instruments for this research. "In any experimental physics lab in India, most instruments are imported. We can sell it at a lower cost," he says.

It's a safe bet, if you ask Sunil Nair, Professor of Physics at the Indian Institute of Science Education and Research (IISER) Pune. Nair is the Project Director at I-HUB Quantum Technology Foundation (I-HUB QTF), funded by the Department of Science & Technology (DST). I-HUB QTF was started in 2021 with the aim of increasing levels of research in quantum technology and incubating start-ups. When it made an open call for start-ups in August 2024, it received an overwhelming response of over 100 proposals, from which eight were selected. "Honestly, I expected half of that," says Nair.

After nexAtom was set up, one more quantum company was formed in RRI by Urbasi Sinha and researchers from other institutions like the Indian Institute of Science. Called QuSyn, this company is developing four product lines: a quantum random number generator, a shared key that is truly random, a software that uses a quantum algorithm to extract features in images, and a single photon source. Except for the software to analyse images, all the products were a continuation of research at Sinha's laboratory.

Quantum computing is perhaps the most recognisable face of the sector, with applications in almost all industries. Marking a major stride forward, in December, Google introduced its quantum chip, Willow, which reduces errors exponentially and outpaces today's supercomputers by years. The optimism around quantum computing is, however, tempered  by the slow scaling of hardware for large applications. On the other hand, quantum sensing is more likely to see products hit the market sooner. Measuring gravitational and magnetic fields to high degrees of accuracy opens up applications ranging from detecting submarines underwater to minerals underground.

The idea of a quantum start-up ecosystem looked bleak even a few years ago. It was risky for venture capitalists to plunge headlong into a capital-intensive deep tech sector with a long gestation period. But things changed after the National Quantum Mission was approved in 2023, with a funding of up to ₹25 crore for quantum tech start-ups. "Some of the application domains of quantum tech can be niche, low-volume areas, but of extreme strategic importance," says Nair. Now younger researchers can see entrepreneurship in the sector as a viable career because they have a patient investor on their side.

While many of the current start-ups in this field are typically low on the scale of technology readiness, an exception is QNu Labs, a Bengaluru start-up co-founded by Anil Prabhakar, Professor of Electrical Engineering at IIT Madras. QNu imagines a future where data highways will need to be encrypted using quantum mechanical systems that can detect any interference attempts.

"One of the killer applications for quantum computing is breaking of passwords. So, if in 10 years, someone has the ability to decrypt your code, they can harvest it from today itself," says Prabhakar. This is an area of quantum communications where governments sense an urgency. Sectors of strategic importance like defence, reserve banks, and healthcare have sensitive data with a shelf life of more than a decade. They are all keen to see their key communications lines quantum-encrypted, and so start-ups in this vertical of quantum tech have grown faster than others.

Vishesh Rajaram, Founder of Speciale Invest, a venture company investing specifically in deep tech, says, "We see quantum security as a here-and-now problem, with a strong opportunity to grow." He, however, doesn't hold the same view for quantum computing: "there are too many moving parts in it. Its journey will be a little longer and is unpredictable," he says. While there are different types of quantum computing hardware being developed in parallel, they are more prone to errors from noise — disturbances in the form of radio waves, electromagnetic fields and heat.

The rise of artificial intelligence (AI) has changed the landscape for quantum computing. "Quantum computing is at a stage where AI was five years ago," says Nair. A true simulation of the chemistry of a molecule, for example, needs the help of quantum computers that may not be ready in 10, even 20 years. However, existing machine learning models are already taking a crack at it.

Prabhakar, who is also building a photonic quantum computer at his start-up Quanfluence, says, "If we had started this 10 years ago, quantum computing would have been in a sweet spot. Today, that sweet spot is becoming smaller as AI is becoming more powerful." In fact, AI is being used to build better quantum computers. In November 2024, Google DeepMind introduced AlphaQubit, an AI system that identifies quantum errors inside computers.

Most start-ups in quantum computing are likely to look at hybrid quantum-classical solutions instead. The quantum computer will work alongside a classical high-performance computer and the tasks they perform are likely to be split between them to maximise advantages. It also gives rise to a middle ground for 'quantum-inspired' computing. "A start-up needs to show solutions and make revenue," says Prabhakar. With the existing quality of quantum computers, start-ups may be able to solve only toy problems, for which they are unlikely to be paid. "Even primary supporters of quantum computing like IBM are hedging (their) bets by doing a combination of neuromorphic computing, quantum computing and machine learning to give the best results possible," he says.

The quantum sector is not yet a very competitive space for Indian start-ups, who need to build both the products and the market simultaneously. "You need to grow the pie before dividing it," says Prabhakar. In this field, a win for anyone – a start-up, a small business, or a large telecom network – is a win for everyone because it helps make the case for the technology to get deployed. This is especially important given that China, the U.S., the U.K. and France have already invested huge amounts in quantum research.

On the other hand, the Indian companies have not got carried away by the hype. "Our ecosystem is taking shape with characteristic pragmatism," says Sinha of RRI. "This methodical approach, combined with our deep quantum physics expertise, suggests that when the quantum revolution truly arrives, India won't just be participating. It will be defining crucial parts of it."

With additional reporting by Shubashree Desikan

See also:

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Automated growth
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