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The Information Technology Industry Council (ITIC) warns that the U.S. is entering a decisive phase in its pursuit of quantum leadership, where earlier policy ambitions must now translate into execution. As the nation marked April 14 as ‘World Quantum Day,’ the U.S. faces a pivotal moment in quantum policy, arriving as the technology shifts from research to early-stage deployment across computing, communications, and sensing. At the same time, policymakers and industry are increasingly aligned on the national security and economic implications of quantum advancement, underscoring the need for deeper, structured public-private collaboration.

“This shift is already visible in global investment trends. Global investment in quantum technologies, spanning government programs, venture capital, and corporate R&D, is estimated at $33.28 billion for 2025, with the United States leading at $12.1 billion,” Sameer Boray and Hannah Specogna, wrote in a Monday ITI TechWonk blog post. “By 2035, the three pillars of quantum technology could represent a $97 billion market. Governments around the globe and industry are scaling commitments to quantum R&D, but sustained progress will depend on how effectively these efforts are aligned. What was once a frontier research domain is now a core component of technology and economic strategy. In order for the U.S. to maintain its lead, the time to act on implementation is now.”

As lawmakers consider reauthorizing the National Quantum Initiative, ITI highlights a narrowing window to convert foundational investments into measurable outcomes, particularly amid intensifying global competition. The lapse of several research programs in 2023 has created continuity gaps, reinforcing the urgency for sustained funding and coordinated federal action to maintain momentum.

Recent measures by the federal government have elevated quantum information science to a national priority. The Genesis Mission, signed in November 2025, explicitly designates quantum information science as a priority domain alongside AI and advanced computing, which the White House Science Advisor called ‘the largest marshaling of federal scientific resources since the Apollo program.’

The National Quantum Initiative (NQI) runs through 2029, but several key R&D activities lapsed in September 2023. These activities are critical to sustaining U.S. leadership in the field, and their lapse creates an urgent need for renewed legislative direction and continued policy focus.

“The reauthorization of the National Quantum Initiative presents a critical opportunity to move from strategy to execution, and to reinforce U.S. leadership at a moment of intensifying global competition and quantum advancement,” Boray and Specogna identified. “As Congress considers next steps, implementation will be as important as reauthorization. This moment presents a narrow window to translate strategic intent into durable outcomes.”

ITI’s analysis signals a broader shift from strategy to implementation, with priorities centered on accelerating adoption of post-quantum cryptography, strengthening public-private collaboration, and addressing workforce shortages that could constrain progress. It also underscores the importance of aligning with international partners on standards and supply chains, while pushing beyond research toward commercialization. The report makes clear that long-term leadership will hinge less on early breakthroughs and more on the ability to operationalize quantum technologies at scale.

Boray and Specogna detailed key priorities for policymakers to accelerate the migration to post-quantum cryptography, particularly as federal networks and critical infrastructure face long transition timelines that demand clear deadlines, sustained funding, and tighter interagency coordination. Industry is expected to play a central role in developing, testing, and scaling these solutions. 

At the same time, the ITI post highlights that strengthening public-private collaboration remains essential, with companies across the quantum value chain already advancing hardware, software, and applications. Policy frameworks must enable continuous, structured engagement to ensure federal investments align with real-world deployment cycles.

Equally pressing is the need to address workforce constraints, which continue to limit progress. Expanding education, reskilling initiatives, and pathways for high-skilled talent will be critical to sustaining U.S. leadership. Policymakers are also being urged to deepen international coordination, aligning with allies on standards, supply chains, and research to reduce fragmentation and ensure interoperability. 

Finally, advancing commercialization is emerging as a defining priority. While the National Quantum Initiative Act of 2018 concentrated research within academia, the next phase will depend on extending those efforts into market-ready applications to accelerate deployment and reinforce U.S. innovation.

“These priorities reflect a broader need for policy approaches that are targeted, flexible, and aligned with current developments,” according to Boray and Specogna. “At a moment of growing global competition, sustained and coordinated policy action will be critical. We encourage U.S. policymakers to take action; ensuring that U.S. policy keeps pace with technological progress will determine whether the United States leads in the quantum era or cedes ground to global competitors.”

Commenting on World Quantum Day, Alison King, vice president of government affairs at Forescout Technologies, said that it is meant to raise public awareness of quantum science and technology, and the profound ways rapid advances in this field will shape everyday life.

“As companies like Google move up their quantum timelines, the real focus shouldn’t be on trying to predict when ‘Q‑Day’ will arrive, but on acknowledging what is already at risk well before it does,” King wrote in an emailed statement. “Adversaries are collecting encrypted, sensitive data today with the intent to decrypt it later, once a cryptographically relevant quantum computer is achieved. Migration timelines are being compressed, the attack surface is already exposed, and delay only compounds risk.”

She added that organizations need clear visibility into where quantum‑vulnerable encryption exists across legacy systems, embedded devices, and enterprise environments so they can plan accordingly. “From there, CISOs and CFOs must align risk management, budgets, and modernization efforts to support a phased transition to quantum‑resistant encryption. Post‑quantum readiness is no longer a future problem – it’s an immediate operational requirement.”

From a legislative perspective, the Senate Commerce Committee voted on Tuesday to advance reauthorization of the National Quantum Initiative Act, incorporating a series of amendments targeting near-term technological applications, post-quantum cryptography, and related priorities.

Marsha Blackburn, a Republican Senator from Tennessee, highlighted during the markup that three of her bills had been folded into the NQIA Reauthorization as amendments to cover the Advancing Quantum Manufacturing Act, the Quantum Sandbox for Near-Term Application Act, and the National Quantum Cybersecurity Migration Strategy Act.

The first would strengthen coordination between the Department of Energy and the National Science Foundation, and create a Manufacturing USA institute dedicated to quantum manufacturing. This has been tasked with identifying the capabilities needed to support quantum development and providing financial assistance.

The second would create a public-private partnership aimed at accelerating the development of near-term quantum applications. The third would direct the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy to lead development of a national strategy, helping prepare the federal government for the cybersecurity risks posed by advancing quantum technologies.

The quantum threat becomes especially acute for OT (operational technology) and ICS (industrial control systems) environments, where legacy infrastructure and cryptographic rigidity compound the challenge. Unlike enterprise IT, OT and ICS networks underpinning critical sectors such as energy, water, transportation, and manufacturing were not built for cryptographic agility, with many systems running fixed firmware on decade-long replacement cycles. A cryptographically relevant quantum computer could undermine not just data confidentiality, but the integrity of command-and-control communications that keep physical infrastructure operational. 

ITI’s call for clear transition deadlines and sustained funding must explicitly encompass OT and ICS environments, where the gap between current cryptographic posture and quantum-resilient standards is widest, and where the consequences of falling behind are measured in physical disruption, not data breaches.

Anna Ribeiro

Industrial Cyber News Editor. Anna Ribeiro is a freelance journalist with over 14 years of experience in the areas of security, data storage, virtualization and IoT.