How often in history does an industry get rewritten?
A century after quantum mechanics was first written into mathematics, Spain is now writing it into industry. With €800 million in public funding and a growing constellation of startups, the country is staking its place in a second quantum revolution—one that promises to transform not just computing, but communication and measurement itself. The ecosystem is still young, still small, but the seriousness of its ambition suggests that what begins quietly can still arrive consequentially.
- Spain's quantum sector is racing against a global clock—whoever converts quantum theory into commercial value first will define the industry's architecture for decades.
- The gap is stark: 40 quantum startups versus 400 AI companies, yet the few that exist are pursuing unicorn valuations and international defense contracts.
- Multiverse Computing's potential €500M raise and Qilimanjaro's cloud platform signal that Spanish firms are moving from research mode into market competition.
- Quantum communications has become an urgent security frontier—current encryption could one day be broken, and Spanish firms like QDynamics and g2-Zero are racing to build theoretically unbreakable alternatives.
- The government's €800M strategy across computing, communications, and sensing is the scaffolding—the real test is whether private capital and startup execution can meet it halfway before global rivals pull ahead.
Spain is building something most people have never heard of—and fewer still understand. The country has committed €800 million in public funding to quantum technology through 2030, with plans to draw in another €700 million from private investors. It is a long bet on a field that remains largely invisible to the public, even as its implications grow harder to ignore.
Quantum mechanics is not new—its mathematical foundations date to 1925. The first quantum revolution quietly gave the world lasers, semiconductors, fiber optics, and the atomic clocks inside GPS systems. The second revolution is more deliberate. It is about controlling individual quantum systems—atoms, photons, electrons—precisely enough to harness phenomena like superposition and entanglement. That control is the threshold between laboratory and industry.
Spain's quantum startup ecosystem is small but serious. Barcelona-based Qilimanjaro Quantum Tech is building full-stack analog quantum computers and recently launched SpeQtrum, a cloud platform offering remote access to classical and quantum systems alike. San Sebastián's Multiverse Computing has raised €215 million and is negotiating a €500 million round that would push its valuation past €1.5 billion. Its focus is distinctive: using quantum methods to make artificial intelligence more efficient and less energy-intensive, with over 160 patents backing its approach.
Quantum communications has emerged as a parallel urgency. As computing power grows, today's encryption standards may eventually become vulnerable. Spanish firms are responding—QDynamics is testing quantum key distribution in real-world networks, while g2-Zero, a spinoff from Spain's national research council, is developing photonic components for communications and sensing. The latter has been selected for NATO's Quantum DeepLab incubator and received backing from the European Space Agency.
The government's strategy targets three pillars—computing, communications, and sensing—in a coordinated effort to ensure Spain does not fall behind as the technology matures. The startups are few, but their ambitions are not. What comes next depends on whether theoretical possibility can be turned into practical value, and whether Spain's public investment arrives in time to matter.
Spain is quietly building something that could reshape how the world computes, communicates, and measures. It's not yet the household conversation that artificial intelligence has become, but the momentum is unmistakable. The country has committed 800 million euros in public funding to quantum technology development through 2030, with plans to mobilize another 700 million from private investors—a total bet of 1.5 billion euros on technologies that most people have never heard of and fewer still understand.
Quantum mechanics itself is not new. The mathematical foundations were laid in 1925, making it a century-old science. But what's new is the ability to actually build things with it. The first quantum revolution gave us lasers, fiber optics, semiconductors, medical scanners, and the atomic clocks that make GPS work. We live inside that revolution without thinking about it. The second one is different. It's about taking individual quantum systems—atoms, photons, electrons—and controlling them precisely enough to create phenomena like superposition and entanglement. That control is the threshold. Once you cross it, you're no longer in the laboratory. You're building an industry.
Paloma Cabello, an investor focused on deep technology, put it plainly at a forum on quantum communications: how often in history does an industry get rewritten? Not often. Quantum computing offers that chance. The money is already flowing toward whoever figures out practical applications first. The field is called Quantum-as-a-Service, and billions are moving into it globally.
In Spain, the ecosystem is still small. There are roughly 40 startups working in quantum technology, compared to about 400 in artificial intelligence. But the ones that exist are serious. Qilimanjaro Quantum Tech, founded in Barcelona in 2019, is building analog quantum computers—full-stack systems designed to solve complex commercial and scientific problems. The company, led by CEO Marta Pascual Estarellas, had 67 employees last year. They recently launched SpeQtrum, a cloud platform that gives remote access to classical, analog, and digital quantum computers. The company is backed by both private and public capital and is negotiating new funding rounds.
Multiverse Computing, based in San Sebastián, has raised 215 million euros since its founding and is in talks for a 500-million-euro round that would value it above 1.5 billion euros—making it a unicorn. The company's approach is different: they're using quantum technology to make artificial intelligence more efficient, accessible, and sustainable. Their model compression technology cuts computational requirements and energy consumption without sacrificing performance, allowing companies to run advanced AI locally and privately. They hold more than 160 patents.
Quantum communications represents another strategic frontier. As computers grow more powerful, the encryption that currently protects most digital communications and data could eventually become vulnerable. That possibility has created urgency around quantum key distribution—QKD—systems that would be theoretically unbreakable. QDynamics is studying how these systems perform in real-world network conditions. g2-Zero, a spinoff from Spain's national research council, is developing single-photon sources and other quantum photonic components for communications, computing, and sensing applications. Their work has attracted international attention: they were selected for NATO's Quantum DeepLab defense incubator and received backing from the European Space Agency.
The Spanish government's 800-million-euro strategy targets three areas: quantum computing, quantum communications, and quantum sensing. It's a deliberate, coordinated push to ensure the country doesn't fall behind as this technology matures. The startups are small in number but ambitious in scope. What happens next depends on whether they can turn theoretical possibility into practical value—and whether Spain's public investment can help them get there before the rest of the world does.
Notable Quotes
How many times in history does one have the opportunity to rewrite an industry? Not many, and quantum makes it possible.— Paloma Cabello, investor in innovation and deep technology
The Hearth Conversation Another angle on the story
Why does Spain need its own quantum strategy? Isn't this a global race?
It is global, which is exactly why Spain can't sit it out. The country that figures out practical quantum applications first will own that market. Spain has the research base and now the funding. Without a coordinated strategy, the talent and money just leave.
You mentioned 40 startups versus 400 in AI. That's a huge gap. Does that mean quantum is less promising?
It means quantum is earlier. AI had decades of hype and false starts before it became real. Quantum is just entering the phase where the physics works and people are asking: what can we actually build? The gap will close fast if these companies deliver.
Multiverse Computing is trying to raise 500 million euros. That's an enormous amount for a company most people have never heard of.
It shows where the money sees opportunity. They're not just building quantum computers—they're using quantum techniques to solve a problem everyone has: AI is expensive and power-hungry. If they can make it cheaper and more efficient, every company on Earth becomes a customer.
What about the security angle? You mentioned encryption could become vulnerable.
That's the real urgency behind quantum communications. If someone builds a quantum computer powerful enough, it could theoretically break the encryption protecting bank accounts, government secrets, medical records. The companies working on quantum key distribution are building the locks for a world where the old ones don't work anymore.
Is Spain actually competitive here, or is it just spending money to keep up?
Look at the companies. Qilimanjaro is building full-stack analog quantum computers. Multiverse has 160 patents. g2-Zero got picked by NATO and the European Space Agency. These aren't vanity projects. They're doing things that matter.