Quantum Computing in Automotive Market Trends

Growth Drivers

• Role of quantum computing in battery chemistry: The discipline of quantum chemistry applies quantum mechanics to develop accurate simulations of advanced materials used in automotive batteries. Historically, energy density has been a costly exercise and heavily relied on experimental trial and error. However, innovative technologies including quantum computing have helped enhance the lifetime and energy density metrics of batteries. This has driven stakeholder interest and investments in materials informatics (MI).
  
  MI has accelerated materials innovation by modeling chemical reactions at a sub-atomic or molecular level and simulates electron interactions at anodes and cathodes, along with the understanding of the degradation-inducing formation of oxides. In December 2023, QC Ware Corp. and POSCO Holdings collaborated to develop new techniques for the simulation of battery materials such as realistic solid-state electrolytes for lithium batteries, and benchmarked the use of advanced quantum computing.
  
  Growing energy requirements, a proliferation of electric vehicles (EVs), and the imperative for reducing carbon footprint are driving demand for performant batteries and sustainable energy grids.The abovementioned factors are set to shape the market landscape during the forecast period.

• Growing investments and technological advancements:  The compelling use case of material informatics and battery chemistry has driven several automotive companies to partner with quantum computer developers. Automotive players are heavily investing in developers and hardware partnerships to enhance MI R&D and strengthen their market position. On the contrary, a handful of players focus on assembly line optimization, fleet management, and image classification. Despite the convergence and inclination toward battery chemistry, the market remains fragmented in its choice of quantum application approach or qubit modality.
  
  Players like Mercedes are keen on diversifying their IP portfolio with a combination of photonic and superconducting hardware. Others, including Tesla, are not presently involved in third-party quantum partnerships. The market potential remains strong and companies are involved in strategic investments. In July 2024, planqc raised USD 50 million for the development of industry-relevant quantum computers and cater to automotive, chemistry, climate-tech, healthcare, and finance applications. 

Challenges

• Uncertainty around the wide range of competing hardware modalities and commercialization timescales: One response to combat the uncertainties is to invest heavily and build diverse quantum teams for any quantum computing modality. Alternatively, some companies opt to wait until the market is more advanced before committing key resources. Thirdly, few automotive companies invest in a single modality that is deemed to succeed. For example, some modalities believe they utilize a lower number of physical qubits to create noise-free logical qubits, while others are touted as being easier to manufacture at scale. Major automotive companies are investing in photonic platforms and superconductors, which pose a substitute threat to the market.

• Prevalence of talent gap: Quantum computing is an innovative and promising technology that requires a team of experts to deploy this technology in various applications. Many companies in quantum computing in automotive market face challenges in finding people with the required skill set. Numerous countries and quantum computer manufacturers plan to launch training programs to overcome the shortage of skilled professionals. However, the cost of such training modules is a primary challenge for