Turning Point in the Quantum Computing Market: Commercialization Race Heats Up by 2026
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Rapid Growth and Accelerated Commercialization of the Quantum Computing Market
As of January 2026, the global quantum computing market is on an unprecedented growth trajectory. According to the latest report from global market research firm IDC, the quantum computing market size is projected to grow by 54%, from $2.4 billion in 2025 to $3.7 billion in 2026. Notably, the market’s focus is swiftly shifting from hardware to software and services. The quantum software market alone is expected to reach $850 million in 2026, a 78% increase from the previous year.
This rapid growth is driven by aggressive investments and tangible results from major tech companies. IBM, headquartered in Armonk, New York, shocked the industry in December 2025 by announcing commercial use cases for its 1,000-qubit quantum processor ‘Condor.’ This system demonstrated processing speeds 10,000 times faster than conventional supercomputers in financial portfolio optimization problems and is being used in a pilot project with Goldman Sachs to develop real trading strategies. IBM’s quantum computing revenue reached $230 million in Q4 2025, a 340% increase from the same period the previous year.
Alphabet, Google’s parent company based in Mountain View, California, is also keeping pace in the race for quantum supremacy. In October 2025, Google’s Quantum AI team announced a groundbreaking breakthrough in quantum error correction with the ‘Willow’ chip. This technology achieved a paradoxical phenomenon where error rates decrease as the number of quantum qubits increases, marking a crucial milestone in the development of practical quantum computers. Google’s quantum computing-related patent filings reached 147 in 2025, significantly outpacing IBM’s 89.
Microsoft, headquartered in Redmond, Washington, is establishing its presence in the quantum computing ecosystem with a unique approach. The company’s Azure Quantum cloud platform was utilized by over 2,400 companies across 85 countries as of Q4 2025, with monthly active users surpassing 120,000. Microsoft’s topological qubit technology, under development, shows an error rate 1,000 times lower than conventional superconducting methods, with commercialization targeted for the second half of 2026. If successful, this technology could be a game-changer in the quantum computing market.
Strategies of Korean Semiconductor Companies in Quantum Computing
Leading Korean semiconductor companies are also establishing their unique positioning in the quantum computing market. Samsung Electronics, headquartered in Suwon, Gyeonggi Province, announced the establishment of a dedicated quantum computing semiconductor division in November 2025, with plans to invest 2.5 trillion won over the next three years. Samsung’s strategy focuses on peripheral semiconductors and memory solutions necessary for operating quantum computers, rather than the quantum processors themselves. The company is particularly strong in developing DRAMs that operate in cryogenic environments and special semiconductors for quantum state control, having secured supply contracts with major quantum computing companies like IBM and Google.
SK Hynix, headquartered in Icheon, Gyeonggi Province, is taking a different approach. In August 2025, the company established a quantum memory subsidiary, ‘SK Quantum Memory,’ focusing on developing quantum memory, a critical component of quantum computers. SK Hynix’s quantum memory extends data storage time by 100 times compared to existing products and successfully reduces quantum information loss to below 0.1%. This technology is already being tested at quantum computing research labs at MIT in the U.S. and Tsinghua University in China, with full-scale commercial production set to begin in Q2 2026.
The Korean government is also actively fostering the quantum computing industry. The Ministry of Science and ICT announced the ‘Quantum Computing K-Project’ in December 2025, aiming to develop a Korean-style quantum computer by 2030 with an investment of 1.2 trillion won. This project involves major research institutions such as KAIST, Seoul National University, and POSTECH, alongside Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix, with a focus on quantum cryptography and quantum internet development. As of 2025, South Korea ranked fourth globally in quantum technology patent filings, showing particular strength in quantum sensors and quantum communication.
Intel, headquartered in Santa Clara, California, is differentiating itself by developing silicon-based quantum processors. The company’s ‘Horse Ridge’ cryogenic control chip demonstrated a 40% reduction in operational costs for quantum computers, with Q4 2025 revenue reaching $180 million. Intel’s approach leverages existing semiconductor manufacturing processes to mass-produce quantum chips, which is expected to play a crucial role in accelerating the commercialization of quantum computing.
IonQ, headquartered in College Park, Maryland, is establishing a unique position with its ion trap-based quantum computers. The company announced a 512-qubit system in September 2025, achieving the industry’s highest quantum volume of 2^20. IonQ’s stock price rose by 280% compared to early 2025, with cloud service revenue through Amazon Web Services and Microsoft Azure accounting for 65% of total revenue. The collaboration project with pharmaceutical company Roche for new drug development is gaining attention as a practical industrial application of quantum computing.
Industry Applications and Market Outlook
The industrial application of quantum computing has rapidly expanded since 2025. In the financial services sector, JPMorgan Chase achieved groundbreaking results in portfolio optimization and risk analysis using IBM’s quantum computer. The company announced that it solved a portfolio optimization problem involving 1,000 assets in just 4 minutes with a quantum computer, compared to 72 hours with a conventional supercomputer. Following these achievements, major investment banks like Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley are hastening their adoption of quantum computing, with the global financial quantum computing market projected to reach $1.2 billion by 2026.
The use of quantum computing is also becoming more prevalent in the pharmaceutical and life sciences sectors. Roche, headquartered in Basel, Switzerland, is using IonQ’s quantum computer to perform molecular simulations of Alzheimer’s drug candidates, enabling analysis of drug-protein interactions at ten times the speed of traditional methods. German company Bayer is utilizing Google’s quantum simulator for pesticide molecule design, reducing new product development time by 30%. The global pharmaceutical quantum computing market is expected to grow by 63%, from $380 million in 2025 to $620 million in 2026.
In the logistics and supply chain optimization sector, Volkswagen in Germany is achieving notable results in traffic flow optimization projects using quantum computing. By optimizing taxi routes with quantum algorithms in Lisbon and Beijing, the company reduced average travel time by 20% and fuel consumption by 15%. Amazon is testing inventory placement optimization using quantum annealing in its logistics centers, reporting a 25% improvement in warehouse operational efficiency in initial results.
However, significant technical and economic barriers still exist in the growth of the quantum computing market. The most significant challenges are the complexity of quantum error correction and the maintenance costs of cryogenic operational environments. The operational costs of commercial quantum computers currently range from $10 million to $50 million annually, which is prohibitively expensive for most companies to adopt directly. The shortage of quantum specialists is also a serious issue. The global demand for quantum computing experts is expected to be 150,000 by 2026, but the actual supply is projected to be only 35,000.
Despite these challenges, the long-term outlook for the quantum computing market is very bright. According to the latest analysis by Boston Consulting Group, the economic value generated by quantum computing is expected to reach $850 billion by 2035. The greatest benefits are anticipated in the fields of chemistry, materials science, financial services, and logistics, which are expected to account for 70% of the total market value. Korean companies, leveraging their accumulated expertise in semiconductors and displays, are expected to play a significant role in the quantum hardware ecosystem, with a high likelihood of securing over 20% of the global market share in quantum memory and control semiconductors.
2026 is poised to be a decisive year when quantum computing transitions from a laboratory curiosity to a real business solution. The intense competition among major tech companies, active government support, and the increase in practical industrial applications are driving explosive growth in this market. However, resolving challenges related to technical maturity, economic viability, and the cultivation of specialized talent will be key factors for sustained growth.
*This article is for informational purposes only and is not investment advice. Investment decisions should be made at one’s own discretion and responsibility.*
