Here’s what Rick Mercer doesn’t know about how Canada stacks up in quantum computing

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Ottawa launched its Canadian Quantum Champions Program last December to help homegrown companies develop and commercialize their technologies and to keep them headquartered in the country. The program will award up to $92 million to the same three Canadian startups selected by DARPA in addition to Montreal-based Anyon Systems Inc.

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How much money is being spent on quantum?

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The first National Quantum Strategy, released in 2023, outlined the federal government’s goals to “make Canada a world leader” in developing, advancing and using quantum computing and technologies.

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But Ottawa and the tech community began investing in quantum before that. Total public and private investments in Canadian quantum since 2002 exceed $2 billion, according to Innovation, Science and Economic Development (ISED) Canada.

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The federal government has invested more than $1.6 billion since 2012 in quantum, including a $334.3-million spending commitment in the budget.

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Provincial governments have also made “significant investments in centres of quantum leadership,” ISED said.

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For example, Ontario in 2024 invested nearly $15 million in the Quantum Valley Ideas Lab, a Waterloo, Ont.-based research hub that helps companies advance and adopt quantum technologies. It is also in discussions to provide funding to help Xanadu build a quantum data centre in Toronto.

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Tech pioneers have chipped in, too, including BlackBerry Ltd. founders Mike Lazaridis and Doug Fregin, who set up a $100-million venture capital fund in 2013 to commercialize quantum computing.

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Venture capital investment in Canadian quantum technology companies totalled $625 million from 2020 to 2026, according to PitchBook.

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How does Canada stack up?

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The U.S. and China outpace other countries in funding quantum. Private venture capital investment in U.S. quantum companies totalled about US$5.8 billion from 2020 to 2026, according to PitchBook. On the public side, the U.S. government had funnelled more than US$4 billion to the sector as of 2024, according to estimates in a McKinsey & Co. report that year.

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The Donald Trump administration in May announced it would provide US$2 billion to nine quantum companies — including US$100 million to D-Wave — in exchange for equity stakes in the businesses.

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China, meanwhile, has poured at least US$15 billion into the sector as of 2023, according to McKinsey. It set up a US$10-billion national quantum lab in 2017.

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European Union countries and the European Commission have provided US$13 billion in public funding for quantum since 2020 and are seeking more private investment for the bloc’s startups. Germany has invested at least US$5 billion, while France has invested more than US$2.2 billion as of 2023, according to McKinsey.

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Japan and Britain have channelled additional public funds into quantum, with the former investing US$7.4 billion and the latter investing US$4.4 billion since 2023.

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What’s next for Canada?

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Lisa Lambert, outgoing chief executive of industry group Quantum Industry Canada, said Ottawa’s $82-billion defence push could be a major boon for quantum-focused small and mid-sized businesses.