The Accelerating Quantum Revolution
According to Louis Barson, director of science, business and education at the UK’s Institute of Physics (IOP), the second quantum revolution is approaching faster than anticipated, promising transformative changes across multiple sectors. Unlike the first quantum revolution that enabled our digital age through technologies like semiconductors and lasers, this new wave is set to revolutionize drug discovery, advanced sensors, and materials science while tackling problems beyond the reach of today’s most powerful supercomputers.
The significance of quantum science is such that the United Nations has declared 2025 the International Year of Quantum Science and Technology, marking a century since the foundational breakthroughs of 1925 that established quantum theory as we know it. As Barson notes, while practical quantum computing remains several years away, “the horizon seems to be shrinking” as development accelerates globally.
Global Quantum Landscape and Market Readiness
The quantum sector has demonstrated remarkable growth through record-breaking fundraising and technological advancements. US-based PsiQuantum and Finland’s IQM have secured substantial investments, while companies like Equal1 at University College Dublin are leveraging existing semiconductor technology to develop more accessible quantum machines. Equal1’s CEO aims to position the startup as the “Nvidia of quantum” by the end of the decade.
Barson highlights particularly interesting innovations from UK quantum companies, including Oxford Ionics, recently acquired by US-based IonQ in a $1 billion deal, and Quantinuum, which recently raised $600 million to develop quantum computing applications for cybersecurity. What makes quantum computing challenging—the difficulty of maintaining quantum states—ironically makes quantum systems exceptionally effective as sensors, leading to many near-term applications in sensing, imaging, and positioning.
These emerging technologies are already demonstrating real-world impact in healthcare through improved brain scanning and cancer detection capabilities, as well as in subsurface imaging. The progression of the UK quantum sector accelerates amid growing skills demands reflects this expanding commercial viability.
The Critical Skills Shortage
Barson’s background as a senior civil servant focused on growing the UK’s “future sectors”—including AI, smart robotics, and quantum—gives him unique insight into the challenges facing the quantum industry. He identifies a significant skills gap in both the UK and Ireland, with demand for quantum talent outpacing the supply of trained specialists at every level.
“The only way to grow the quantum sector in the UK and Ireland is to ensure people have the essential skills to drive innovation through research and development,” Barson emphasizes. The IOP is actively working to highlight this challenge while championing physics education and facilitating connections between students, researchers, and industry.
Recent initiatives like the establishment of five quantum research hubs under the UK’s National Quantum Technologies Programme are generating momentum in skills development and industry-research collaboration. These developments in space technology and related innovations demonstrate how cross-sector advancements often share similar foundational requirements.
Building the Quantum Pipeline from the Ground Up
The UK’s National Quantum Strategy, published in 2023, aims to train more than 1,000 PhD researchers in quantum or related fields over the next decade and includes a Quantum Skills Taskforce to develop a comprehensive skills action plan. However, Barson stresses that addressing the quantum skills gap must begin much earlier than postgraduate education.
“The start of this skills pipeline is in school physics lessons—as it is for so many physics-powered industries,” he notes. A recent IOP report calls for a £120 million investment over the next decade to train the next generation of physics teachers and tackle the STEM skills gap. Currently, approximately 25% of UK state schools lack a physics teacher specialized in the subject.
Judith Hillier, IOP’s vice president for learning and skills, highlighted in the report that physics-based industries contributed £190 billion to the English economy in 2019, employing 2.23 million people across the nation. Yet businesses are struggling to recruit qualified personnel. Similar challenges in assessing climate risk and temperature sensitivity across industries underscore the broader need for scientific expertise.
Broader Implications and Opportunities
The quantum skills challenge extends beyond the UK, with Ireland also experiencing teacher shortages across STEM subjects—more than 1,800 teaching posts remained vacant before the current school year. This shortage threatens the pipeline of future talent not just for quantum technologies but for numerous science-driven fields.
Barson sees the growth of quantum technology as a powerful example of how physics skills can create “amazing value for society” and hopes this realization will inspire more students to pursue the subject. Physics not only shapes our understanding of the world but is vital to solving our biggest challenges, from addressing climate emergencies to improving disease diagnosis and treatment.
The intersection of quantum development with other cutting-edge fields is becoming increasingly apparent. Research into cancer treatment resistance mechanisms may eventually benefit from quantum-enabled drug discovery, while space exploration advancements could leverage quantum sensing and navigation technologies.
As quantum technologies mature, their integration with other emerging fields continues to accelerate. The application of AI-powered ecological forecasting demonstrates how multiple advanced technologies can converge to address complex challenges, while transformations in financial services technology show the broad applicability of computational advancements across sectors.
Barson remains optimistic that raising awareness of quantum technology’s potential will help people recognize physics’ fundamental importance to the modern world—a field where everyone, regardless of background, can and should participate in shaping our technological future.
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