Insider Brief
- A new report finds that real-time quantum error correction has become the central requirement for achieving utility-scale quantum computing as investment, technical progress, and workforce pressures intensify.
- Global funding for quantum computing has reached about $50 billion, with Japan now leading annual government investment and Google’s late-2024 QEC demonstration reshaping hardware priorities across platforms.
- The report warns that fast, hardware-level decoders and a severe global talent shortage have become the industry’s biggest bottlenecks, even as QEC research output accelerates and AI begins to play a larger—though still uncertain—role in decoding.
PRESS RELEASE — A new report, “The QEC Report 2025“, reveals that Quantum Error Correction (QEC) has become the “universal priority” and a critical, necessity for building utility-scale quantum computers.
Steve Brierley, CEO and Founder of Riverlane, said: “Fuelled by record investment and landmark QEC breakthroughs over the last 12 months, the quantum industry is in an urgent race to utility-scale, battling both complex technical hurdles and critical talent shortages. Real-time QEC is the cornerstone, but achieving true success demands both dedicated expertise and global, collaborative co-design across the entire quantum stack.”
The report was prepared in partnership with Resonance, which conducted extensive research, and is based on insights gathered from interviews with 25 global quantum computing and QEC experts, including 2025 Nobel laureate John Martinis. Key findings include:
AI’s Double-Edged Sword: Artificial Intelligence (AI) is becoming crucial for QEC, particularly in accelerating real-time decoding and error syndrome detection. However, its own training requirements and performance scalability are still in question. AI will reshape roles, eliminating some but creating new, hybrid positions.
Quantum computing’s future hinges on real-time error correction, not just more qubits: Real-time QEC is identified as the “crucial foundation” for quantum computers to outperform classical machines. Its importance has doubled as a competitive differentiator since 2024.
Google’s Breakthrough Sparks Industry Shift: At the end of 2024, Google Quantum AI achieved a “landmark achievement” by proving QEC works in practice, not just in theory, dramatically reducing error rates in superconducting qubits. This has renewed optimism and spurred hardware demonstrations across various qubit types.
Massive Global Funding, New Leaders Emerge: Global government funding for quantum computing has reached approximately $50 billion, with Japan leading the pack at $7.9 billion allocated in 2025 (surpassing the US’s $7.7 billion).
The “QEC Code Explosion” – A Shift to Practicality: Research into QEC codes has exploded, with 120 new peer-reviewed papers published in the first 10 months of 2025 (up from 36 in 2024). This signifies a clear pivot from purely theoretical work to practical experiments, with all seven profiled codes now having hardware demonstrations.
Technical Bottleneck: Real-time Decoders and Co-design: Developing fast, low-latency, and scalable “real-time decoders” for QEC is now a “critical bottleneck.” This requires moving beyond software prototypes to specialised hardware like FPGAs and ASICs, with response times under 1 microsecond. A “holistic co-design” approach – integrating hardware, software, and algorithms – is essential for system-level performance.
Quantum’s biggest challenge isn’t physics, it’s people. Looming talent crisis threatens industry growth: Despite technical advancements, the report warns of a severe “talent gap” in the QEC workforce, describing it as the “ultimate bottleneck.” Only an estimated 1,800-2,200 professionals currently specialise in QEC worldwide, with 50-66% of quantum job openings remaining unfilled. The specialised training required for QEC specialists can take up to 10 years, creating a critical pipeline problem.