Competition to create more advanced, production-ready quantum chips has reached a fever pitch, as multiple companies have emerged with industry-changing technologies and massive funding. The quantum computing space is moving incredibly fast. Today, industry players are heavily pursuing alternative approaches, among them superconducting technologies and topological architectures. Milestone moments include Microsoft’s announcement of Majorana, a new kind of chip with a topological core architecture. Moreover, several funding rounds underscore the attracting rush of investors into this fast-growing sector.
By February 2025, Microsoft was ready to announce their Majorana quantum chips, touting them as the breakthrough development in the race for quantum chip supremacy. This new chip takes advantage of a novel overarching topological core architecture that may increase resistance against errors while enhancing computational efficiency. This step further demonstrates Microsoft’s determination to be at the forefront of the quantum computing industry.
Investment Surge in Quantum Startups
Investment in quantum technology is booming, with SEEQC’s recent $30 million series A round in January 2025 being just one indicator. This latest round of funding has been co-led by Booz Allen Ventures and NordicNinja. Together with their support, SEEQC will continue making tangible strides in developing scalable quantum computing solutions.
Meanwhile, Quandela, a French startup focused on quantum photonics, raised €50 million in a Series B round in November 2023. The French government defended the company in the midst of the France 2030 Plan. President Biden’s support continues the trend of increasing government investment in quantum efforts.
Another distinguished competitor, PsiQuantum, has grabbed a lot of headlines for its sparkling $450 million Series D financing in 2021. Recent reports suggest that the company has been in serious talks to raise at least $750 million. They are looking to get out the door with a $6 billion pre-money valuation. This ambitious fundraising effort is a signal of the increasing confidence that investors have in the market opportunities for quantum technologies.
Diverse Innovations Across the Quantum Landscape
Innovation is at an all-time high in the quantum computing space. One such example is Quantinuum, formed in 2021 through the merger of Cambridge Quantum and Honeywell Quantum Solutions. It’s an exciting time at AWS in creating fully integrated quantum systems that connect hardware and software.
Qilimanjaro, another Spanish startup, is hitting the headlines with its push towards analog quantum application-specific integrated circuits (QASICs). Qilimanjaro’s approach is full-stack, integrating hardware, software and applications. With this approach, they’re able to provide tailored solutions for targeted quantum computing use cases.
In April 2025, Fujitsu and RIKEN announced the world’s first 256-qubit superconducting quantum computer. This milestone serves to underscore the tremendous pace of recent superconducting advances. This shared vision to explore new limits of qubit performance and scalability is what makes this collaboration so powerful.
“This technology lends credence to the notion that quantum computation occurs in many parallel universes.” – Hartmut Neven
Competitive Edge: Unique Approaches and Technologies
While many companies are doing great things, some are certainly setting themselves apart with their approaches as they innovate. QuantWare, a Dutch quantum computing startup, has developed a cutting-edge 3D chip architecture known as VIO. This pioneering technology directly overcomes the scaling bottlenecks inherent in quantum processing units (QPUs). This remarkable architectural innovation would be key to addressing the limitations and prospects of today’s quantum systems.
The French startup Pasqal appears to be fully committed to a full-stack strategy. It is exceptionally placing its stars on neutral atoms as their quantum computing solution of choice. Combining procedural generation and modification, alongside other methods, will hopefully provide novel avenues for creating more efficient and powerful quantum computations.
A second large player is IonQ, the only other U.S. public company focused on the trapped-ion technology, which is still working on its IonQ Forte system. IonQ’s progress is a testament to the infathomable potential benefits of trapped-ion systems. These systems are integral to realizing the next generation of scalable and reliable quantum computing solutions.
Among other recent entrants, Rigetti Computing has pursued superconducting technology since its founding in 2013. Given that Rigetti is a publicly listed company, its rapid progress is a telling sign of the increasing commercial viability of quantum technologies.
D-Wave, founded in 1999 and publicly traded on the NYSE, has been a leader in quantum annealing technology. As things progress, D-Wave is actively looking for other areas it can apply its processors towards.
Finally, as a German startup, Akhetonics focuses on an all-optical general-purpose chip. Having raised €6 million in seed funding led by Matterwave Ventures in November 2024, Akhetonics represents the innovative spirit driving advancements in quantum photonics.