28 Aug 2026

Quantum technology: what the 2026 research is telling investors

We have reviewed six independent pieces of research published during 2026, covering the quantum technology market from investment, commercial, technical and financial-risk perspectives.

Taken together, the research points to a sector moving steadily from scientific research towards commercial and strategic relevance.

A few themes stand out:

🔹 The market opportunity is substantial.
StoneX/Benchmark estimates a quantum technology TAM of around $150bn by 2035, potentially exceeding $400bn when displaced classical compute is included.

🔹 The investable landscape is broadening.
Barclays identifies 45 listed and more than 80 private companies across the quantum value chain, challenging the perception that there are only a handful of investable businesses.

🔹 Capital and M&A activity are accelerating.
Research tracking the sector points to a significant increase in fundraising and M&A activity across 2025 and into 2026.

🔹 Commercialisation is getting closer.
Fidelity International identifies late 2026/2027 as an important period for the theme to become more broadly investable, while highlighting benchmarking and independent validation as increasingly important.

🔹 Quantum is also becoming a financial and security issue.
Citi’s research highlights the potential systemic consequences of a future break in public-key encryption, including risks to financial infrastructure and digital assets.

🔹 The quantum threat is reaching mainstream investors.
Google’s latest findings on the potential timeline for quantum attacks on Bitcoin have brought a previously specialist issue into much wider public and financial discussion.

The research comes from a range of perspectives, including StoneX/Benchmark, Barclays, Fidelity International, Citi Institute, Quantum People/BDO Quantum Circle and Forbes.

The important point is not any single forecast. It is the consistency of direction across independent sources.

The evidence increasingly suggests that quantum technology is developing across a broad ecosystem of hardware, enabling technologies, cloud platforms, software, applications, sensing, communications and cybersecurity, creating opportunities well beyond the small number of companies most commonly associated with the sector.

For investors, 2026/27 is therefore becoming an increasingly important period for understanding the market, identifying the emerging leaders and building conviction ahead of wider commercial adoption.

Read here for further infomation and sources: QE_Quantum_Market_Research_Overview_August_2026