UK Government commits up to £2 billion to quantum technologies
With up to £2 billion pledged and a new procurement programme launched, the UK Government is making its most ambitious quantum investment to date, but industry warns that private capital will be just as critical as public funding.
The UK Government has announced up to £2 billion in funding for quantum technologies, including more than £1 billion over the next four years, confirmed by UKRI in December 2025, and a new procurement programme called ProQure designed to support the scaling of quantum computing across the UK.
The announcement is being billed as the country’s ‘Quantum Leap’, positioning the UK as a first mover in quantum commercialisation.
The funding is distributed across several areas: over £500 million for quantum computing to help companies scale and develop applications in pharmaceuticals, financial services, and energy; £125 million for quantum networking; and £205 million for quantum sensing and navigation, with dedicated applications in medical diagnostics, greenhouse gas monitoring, and ultra-secure communications.
A further £13.8 million will be injected into the UK’s five National Quantum Research Hubs, with an additional £90 million for quantum infrastructure and £20 million for skills and commercialisation programmes.
techUK welcomed the announcement, noting that the UK is already home to 11% of the world’s quantum startups and has attracted 12% of global quantum private equity investment.
The trade association highlighted the ProQure procurement programme as a step in the right direction, but cautioned that sustained, long-term private investment will be essential to support deep-tech companies through lengthy development cycles.
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