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The emerging European regulatory framework
A cohesive regulatory framework for quantum technologies is about to be introduced in Europe through the forthcoming proposal for a Quantum Act by the European Commission.
This is just the latest step in a process that began in 2025, when the European Commission adopted the Quantum Europe Strategy (COM(2025) 363 final) and announced its intention to present a European Quantum Act in 2026.
The topic will finally move beyond the realm of academic and scientific debate to become a priority in European policymaking, as the Union seeks to strengthen its position in an increasingly competitive technological race.
Indeed, as highlighted in the Commission’s Strategy document, despite the Union’s scientific excellence, Europe has struggled to translate its research advantage into industrial capabilities and market share. The fragmentation of national strategies and insufficient coordination between Member States remain, as in many other policy areas, significant obstacles.
The Commission’s Quantum Europe Strategy identified five interconnected areas of action: research and innovation; quantum infrastructure; strengthening the European quantum ecosystem; quantum technologies for space and dual-use applications (security and defense); and skills development. Its overarching objective is to transform the European Union into a quantum industrial powerhouse by 2030.
The Quantum Act, which is expected to be proposed shortly (according to POLITICO’s reporting of 31 October 2026), should therefore not be understood as a self-contained sectoral code. Rather, its function should be to connect existing legislation, technical standards and industrial policy.
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The legal basis and institutional architecture of the Quantum Act
The indicative legal basis for the proposal of Quantum Act comprises Articles 173, 180, and 184 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU).
These provisions reflect the three principal dimensions of the initiative. Article 173 TFEU concerns the strengthening of industrial competitiveness and the conditions necessary for the development of European industry. Article 180 TFEU establishes the Union’s role in complementing and coordinating national research and technological development activities. Article 184 TFEU provides for supplementary research programs and the arrangements necessary for their implementation.
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The regulatory approach: industrial policy and technical standardization
The anticipated approach of the Quantum Act appears to differ from the product-safety-oriented model adopted under the AI Act (Regulation (EU) 2024/1689). Rather, it is expected to follow the approach of the Chips Act, prioritizing industrial policy, investment and the development of European technological capabilities.
The forthcoming proposal is expected to focus primarily on supporting the quantum industry, rather than introducing extensive prescriptive regulation. The reported approach would also include provisions requiring national governments to prioritize the procurement of quantum technologies from EU-based companies or companies established in countries maintaining strategic partnerships with the Union in this field. If confirmed, these provisions would make public procurement an instrument for strengthening European industrial capacity and reducing strategic technological dependencies.
It remains less clear whether the Quantum Act will reproduce the regulatory mechanisms developed under the AI Act, particularly the relationship between harmonized standards, conformity assessment and regulatory sandboxes.
In this respect, M. Kop (Towards a European Quantum Act: A Two-Pillar Framework for Regulation and Innovation, in Columbia Journal of European Law, vol. 31, no. 1, 2025) envisioned a two-pillar strategy. The first pillar would establish an adaptive, risk-based regulatory framework: it would allow regulatory requirements to be tailored to the risks associated with different quantum technologies and applications, while also providing for regulatory sandboxes to facilitate experimentation and innovation. The second pillar would focus on industrial policy, strategic investment and security. Drawing inspiration from the Chips Act, it would seek to strengthen European research and manufacturing capabilities, secure supply chains, support start-ups and SMEs, and accelerate the transition from research to commercialization.
Whether the European Commission will endorse and incorporate this two-pillar strategy remains to be seen.
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Security and technological neutrality
Security is arguably the aspect of quantum regulation requiring the greatest attention and one for which the Quantum Act represents a particularly appropriate legislative instrument. The development of sufficiently powerful quantum computers could undermine some of the cryptographic algorithms currently used to secure digital communications, electronic transactions, digital identities and critical infrastructure. The Quantum Act could therefore play an important role in establishing a coordinated European approach to quantum security, including the transition towards quantum-resistant cryptographic solutions.
The principle of technological neutrality is also particularly relevant in this context. This principle generally requires regulators to refrain from prescribing a specific technological solution in advance, thereby allowing different technologies to compete and evolve.
In the field of quantum-resistant cryptography, two principal approaches are currently relevant: Quantum Key Distribution (QKD), based on the principles of quantum physics, and Post-Quantum Cryptography (PQC), based on mathematical cryptographic algorithms designed to withstand attacks from quantum computers. A general regulatory requirement mandating the exclusive adoption of either QKD or PQC could conflict with the principle of technological neutrality, unless justified by overriding considerations relating to security, interoperability or proportionality.
The principles and definitions section of the Quantum Act will hopefully provide some answers to these questions, clarifying how technological neutrality should be reconciled with the need to establish common security requirements and standards.
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The bridge between research and industry: the Quantum Europe Research and Innovation Initiative
The Quantum Act is also expected to establish a Quantum Europe Research and Innovation Initiative, envisaged by the Quantum Europe Strategy as the principal instrument for coordinating European quantum research and industrial development.
The initiative – although this remains speculative on our part – could take the form of a Joint Undertaking, following the institutional model already adopted for the European High Performance Computing Joint Undertaking, established under Council Regulation (EU) 2021/1173.
The use of the Joint Undertaking model – enabled under Article 187 TFEU, read together with Article 188 TFEU – would provide an institutional framework for coordinating public and private investment, research activities and industrial development across the Member States.
Such an institutional arrangement could help bridge the gap between scientific research and industrial applications, facilitating cooperation between the Union, Member States, research institutions and private stakeholders.
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Towards a coordinated effort to overcome Europe’s technological lag
The effectiveness of the forthcoming Quantum Act will depend not only on the legislative provisions it introduces, but also on its capacity to coordinate the existing legal framework, research initiatives and industrial strategies.
The objective is not to establish a comprehensive and autonomous body of “quantum law”. Rather, the Quantum Act will provide the legal and institutional architecture through which European technological sovereignty can be pursued within a coordinated framework.
