Quantum computing has moved beyond the realm of scientific promise to become one of the defining technological frontiers of the next decade. According to the Quantum Economic Development Consortium, the global quantum computing market stood at around USD 1.4 billion in 2025, with forecasts pointing to more than USD 20 billion by 2030 and North America accounting for approximately 61% of the global market. This leadership is supported by structured public investment, driven by initiatives such as the National Quantum Act and DARPA’s Quantum Benchmarking Initiative; a highly active venture capital ecosystem — with U.S. companies capturing more than 50% of the USD 4.9 billion invested globally in quantum companies in 2025
—; and the progress of major technology companies such as IBM, Microsoft, Google and Amazon.
According to MIT’s Quantum Index Report he United States is also home to some of the sector’s leading specialized companies, further consolidating its position as a global benchmark in quantum innovation, capital and industrial development.
In this context of technological acceleration and U.S. leadership, the Region of Madrid is particularly well positioned to become one of Europe’s leading quantum computing hubs. The region combines advanced digital infrastructure, scientific and technological talent, research capacity, a dynamic business ecosystem and the presence of global players connected to the development of critical technologies.
Madrid is today the main telecommunications and data hub in Southern Europe. The region has a network of 41 operational data centers, 164 MW of installed capacity and a projected capacity of up to 792 MW in the coming years, in addition to fiber coverage reaching 98.8% of households.
This foundation is especially relevant at a stage in which quantum solutions will coexist with classical systems, cloud computing, supercomputing, secure networks and data-intensive processing. In all these areas, Madrid already holds a competitive position within the European landscape.
This infrastructure strength is complemented by a first-rate base of scientific and technological talent. The Region of Madrid has the second-largest pool of professionals in technology-intensive sectors in Europe, with more than 288,500 experts in these fields. This concentration of talent is already reflected in concrete progress in quantum research, including work by the Institute of Materials Science of Madrid on the control of quantum bits through ultrafast light pulses, developed in collaboration with European scientific institutions.
Institutional commitment further strengthens this positioning. In April 2025, Spain launched its first National Quantum Technologies Strategy, with more than EUR 800 million in public funding through 2030 and the potential to mobilize up to EUR 1.5 billion in combined public and private investment. Presented at the OECD Global Technology Forum in Madrid, the roadmap aims to promote research, industrialization and the adoption of quantum technologies across three main areas — computing, communications and sensing — with particular attention to digital sovereignty, post-quantum cybersecurity and critical infrastructure.
The Region of Madrid reinforced this commitment on May 5, 2026, with the presentation of QMIND, Quantum Madrid for Innovation and New Developments, one of its flagship initiatives to consolidate the region as an international hub for quantum technologies. Led by GMV and backed
by an investment of EUR 5.3 million, the three-year project will bring together large companies, startups and research centers to develop solutions in quantum computing, secure quantum communications and post-quantum cryptography. Its applications will focus on sectors such as energy, banking, industry, defense and cybersecurity. The consortium includes companies, research centers and universities such as BBVA, Repsol, CSIC, Tecnalia, the Polytechnic University of Madrid, the Complutense University of Madrid and the University of Alcalá. The initiative is also complemented by the announcement that the regional government will acquire a quantum computer to be installed at the Polytechnic University of Madrid, the first in Spain to operate from a public university, with open access for the research and business ecosystem.
In addition, the Spanish Society for Technological Transformation invested USD 9.75 million at the beginning of the year as part of Nu Quantum’s EUR 51 million Series A round. As part of the agreement, the company will open a subsidiary in Madrid focused on the industrialization of quantum networks and photonic infrastructure for distributed quantum computing. The operation, framed within Spain’s National Quantum Technologies Strategy and the PERTE Chip program, strengthens Europe’s capabilities in quantum networks and places Madrid in a key area for scaling future distributed quantum computing architectures.
The presence of major U.S. technology companies in Madrid adds another strategic element to the region’s positioning. Microsoft, Google, IBM and AWS are among the players shaping the global evolution of quantum computing, with advances such as Majorana 1, Willow, IBM’s roadmap toward fault-tolerant systems and Ocelot, respectively. Although these developments are part of global strategies, the strong presence of these companies in the region through cloud regions, corporate offices and technological capabilities reinforces Madrid’s ability to integrate into the future value chains of quantum computing, particularly as the sector moves toward hybrid, cloud-based and distributed models.
The relationship between Madrid and the United States in quantum technologies therefore represents a strategic axis of significant value. The United States contributes innovation, capital and industrial development; Madrid offers infrastructure, qualified talent, scientific capacity and a privileged geostrategic position from which to scale solutions into the European market. This complementarity places the Region of Madrid in a favorable position to attract investment, technology projects and business activity linked to the next phase of quantum computing development. As this technology advances toward more mature applications in pharmaceuticals, finance, logistics, materials, defense and cybersecurity, Madrid can consolidate its role not only as a destination for innovation, but as a European platform capable of turning quantum potential into industry, qualified employment and global competitiveness.