Whether I speak with founders, institutional investors, or corporate boards, the same question is emerging: what comes after AI, and how early should we engage? While quantum computing may still feel distant and highly technical, it is here!
It is often described in the language of physics, not in the language of business, strategy, or impact. Yet its implications are deeply human and economic, this is not a topic reserved for scientists. It is a leadership conversation about timing, responsibility, and the ability to recognize transformation early.
Understanding quantum value today does not require a technical background. It requires curiosity, openness, and the willingness to see how the next generation of computing will shape industries, investment decisions, and the future of innovation.
As an investor, a strategic advisor to startups, and a former management consultant who has spent more than two decades helping organizations navigate transformation across industries and countries, I have learned that the real inflection points in technology are never purely technical. They are leadership moments. They are the points which move capital, vision, and governance in the same direction. For years, quantum computing lived comfortably in labs, whitepapers, and conference slides.
What is Quantum Computing?
Describing the behaviors of quantum particles presents a unique challenge. Most common-sense paradigms for the natural world lack the vocabulary to communicate the surprising behaviors of quantum particles. But quantum mechanics reveals how the universe really works. Quantum computers take advantage of quantum mechanics by replacing traditional binary bit circuits with quantum particles called quantum bits, or qubits. These particles behave differently from bits, exhibiting unique properties that can be described only with quantum mechanics. To understand quantum computing, it is important to understand four key quantum mechanics principles: Superposition, Entanglement, Decoherence and Interference.
To learn more about the fundamentals of quantum computing and quantum mechanics principles, see IBM Quantum Computing Overview. It is a type of computation that uses the principles of quantum mechanics, such as superposition and entanglement, to process information in ways that classical computers cannot, enabling the potential to solve highly complex problems in fields like optimization, drug discovery, climate modeling, and cryptography. The article highlights that it is expected that quantum computing will become $1.3 trillion industry by 2035.
Today, it has entered a different moment, not because of technology, but leadership: because leadership readiness now matters more than technical perfection. The real question is no longer whether quantum computing is possible, but whether leaders are preparing their organizations before the inflection point arrives. True innovation leadership is about seeing opportunity before it becomes obvious, about building the right capabilities and governance structures to turn emerging technologies into sustainable advantage. Quantum computing offers exactly that challenge.
Quantum computing matters now because it is quietly moving beyond science into practical application, not by replacing classical computing but by augmenting it where complexity overwhelms today’s tools. In finance, healthcare, logistics, energy, and climate modeling, leaders are already facing problems that exceed traditional computational limits. Strategic thinkers, including those featured in Harvard Business Review’s 2025 article “Quantum Thinking Can Help You Solve Complex Strategy Challenges”, emphasize how quantum thinking, i.e. the ability to reason about complex interdependencies and non-linear systems through new strategic lenses, can help leaders navigate the hardest challenges facing their organizations today. That kind of thinking encourages executives to engage quantum technology as a strategic asset rather than a distant curiosity, reinforcing why leadership engagement now matters. (hbr.org) Earlier work from HBR, such as “Quantum Computing for Business Leaders”, highlights why executives should understand quantum’s potential impact on competitive advantage, risk, and long-term value creation. (hbsp.harvard.edu)
Recent Exits: Oxford Ionics, Lighsynq Technologies
Quantum computing is entering the market not through sudden disruption, but through a clear pattern of validation that leaders should recognize. In 2025, two major exits confirmed that quantum innovation has crossed from experimentation into strategic value creation. Oxford Ionics, a United Kingdom based startup founded in 2019 as a spinout from the University of Oxford by Dr Chris Ballance and Dr Tom Harty, reached a $1.075 billion acquisition by IonQ (USA) after just six years of operation, demonstrating how rapidly deep scientific breakthroughs can convert into strategic commercial assets when leadership, talent, and capital align. Its website is https://www.oxionics.com.
Around the same time, Lightsynq Technologies, a United States based company founded in 2020 by Mihir Pant, Bhaskar Dasgupta, and Mihika Prasad, was acquired by IonQ in a deal valued at $307 million, bringing Lightsynq’s photonic interconnects and quantum memory capabilities into IonQ’s growing technology stack. Its website is https://www.lightsynq.com.
These exits reflect a fundamental leadership reality: quantum innovation cycles are no longer measured in decades, but in years. Alongside these exits, a new generation of quantum startups has made a decisive entrance by prioritizing scalability and real-world integration over theoretical promise.
PsiQuantum, based in the United States and founded in 2016 by Jeremy O’Brien, Terry Rudolph, Mark Thompson, and Pete Shadbolt, is building photonic quantum computers designed to scale using existing semiconductor manufacturing, reflecting a leadership mindset grounded in industrial readiness and execution discipline. Its website is https://psiquantum.com.
Alice and Bob is headquartered in France and was founded in 2020 by Théau Peronnin, Raphaël Lescanne, and Zaki Leghtas; it is advancing fault tolerant quantum architectures that directly address error correction, one of the most critical barriers to commercial usability, positioning the company as a cornerstone player in the path toward practical quantum advantage. Its website is https://alice-bob.com.
QpiAI is based in India and founded in 2019 by Nagendra Nagaraja and Dr Srivathsan Srinivasan, has taken an integrated approach by launching a full stack quantum computer and embedding it within national innovation infrastructure, demonstrating how quantum is becoming part of broader economic and strategic planning rather than remaining confined to research environments. Its website is https://qpi.ai
Nu Quantum, headquartered in the United Kingdom and founded in 2018 as a spinout from the University of Cambridge’s Cavendish Laboratory, is building photonic quantum networking hardware including scalable single photon sources and detectors that could enable distributed quantum computing systems capable of linking processors into larger, more powerful networks. Its work to commercialize entanglement fabric technology positions it at the forefront of next wave quantum infrastructure development.
Its website is https://nu-quantum.com. (quantum.org.uk)
Taken together, these exits and emerging leaders reveal how quantum computing is entering the market through a familiar but demanding path. Leaders who understand this convergence are already thinking beyond technology alone. They anticipate the talent, organizational design, and ethical oversight needed to guide these innovations responsibly. This is where the principles of my book Business Caring Formula come alive: clarity in decision making, courage in taking calculated risks, long term responsibility in planning, trust and intentional truth in team collaboration, and governance that aligns innovation with societal and organizational values. Quantum computing is no longer a distant future bet, but a present leadership challenge, and those who apply these principles will define the era.
My book, The Business Caring Formula, explores the importance of positive and responsible leadership and shows how these principles can guide innovation, impact, and sustainable organizational success, a framework that is particularly relevant for emerging technologies like quantum computing.
