Quantum computing has long been the domain of theoretical physics and academic labs, but it’s starting to move from concept to experimentation in the real world. Industries from logistics and energy to AI and cybersecurity are beginning to explore how quantum capabilities could solve—or cause—complex problems that classical computers struggle with.
Early use cases suggest surprising applications for—and challenges from—quantum computing may arrive sooner than many people expect. Below, members of Forbes Technology Council detail some of the ways quantum may soon be making a real-world, widespread impact.
1. Communication Security
Quantum computing is poised to rapidly transform cybersecurity, likely altering information exchange sooner than organizations expect. It is critical for organizations to explore quantum communication technologies, such as quantum key distribution and quantum networks, to defend against threats and level the playing field by integrating quantum computing defense strategies into defense frameworks. - Mandy Andress, Elastic
2. Simulations For Autonomous Vehicle Testing
Accelerated road testing demands simulating millions of scenarios related to weather, traffic and terrain to train and validate autonomous systems. This involves optimization of scenarios to ensure maximum coverage, risk modeling and detecting anomalies in high-dimensional data obtained from LiDAR, radar and cameras. Quantum computing will be instrumental in performing these simulations much faster. - Ajay Parihar, Fluid Codes
Forbes Technology Council is an invitation-only community for world-class CIOs, CTOs and technology executives. Do I qualify?
3. Rapid Data Analysis
Quantum computing promises to revolutionize data analysis—for example, helping scientists simulate molecules and gene pools and rapidly unlock life-saving cures. However, the same power that accelerates progress also breaks existing data-protection techniques, putting global digital security at risk. It’s a double-edged future: Quantum is miraculous for analyzing data, but it’s also dangerous for protecting data—unless we prepare now. - Srinivas Shekar, Pantherun Technologies
4. Drug Discovery And Materials Design
One surprising area where quantum computing could help soon is drug discovery and designing new materials. Quantum computers can study molecules in ways normal computers can’t. This can help scientists develop new medicines or better batteries faster. Big companies are already working on this, so real-world use may come sooner than people think. - Jay Krishnan, NAIB IT Consultancy Solutions WLL
5. Logistics Optimization
Logistics optimization represents an unexpected area of impact. Quantum computing shows promise for transforming complex routing problems that affect delivery networks and supply chains. The technology could optimize shipping and traffic routes in real time across the globe, which would reduce costs and emissions at a pace that’s beyond current supercomputers. - Raju Dandigam, Navan
6. Telecom Network Optimization
Quantum computing could make a real-world impact sooner than expected in telecom network optimization. Quantum computing can revolutionize telecom networks by significantly enhancing their resilience and delivering richer user experiences. Additionally, with principles like superposition and entanglement, QNLP can address current natural language processing challenges, including nuanced understanding and bias. - Anil Pantangi, Capgemini America Inc.
7. Food Waste Reduction
World hunger is one unique challenge where quantum could have an immediate impact. Roughly one-third of all food produced is lost across the entire supply chain, from farm to table. Quantum algorithms could be applied to optimize the food supply chain, improving demand forecasting, logistics and resource allocation. It can determine the best delivery path and ensure no food goes to waste. - Usman Javaid, Orange Business
8. Synthetic Biology Innovation
Entropy-based quantum computing using nanophotonics is optimized for solving very complex polynomial mathematics. This type of quantum computing can be performed at room temperature and could accelerate the development of low-energy protein configurations and synthetic amino acids. That, in turn, may give synthetic biology a boost in biochip and biosensor development. Products using biochips could elevate patient diagnostics, monitoring and drug delivery to a new level. - John Cho, Tria Federal
9. Smarter Energy Grids
Quantum computing will revolutionize energy systems by enabling real-time monitoring and modeling of electric grids. This will be critical as today’s grids transition to match distributed sources of renewable energy, with growing demand from EVs, electric heating and data centers. I expect quantum will be a key technology to create smarter grids that deliver reliable, clean and affordable energy. - Steve Smith, National Grid Partners
10. Breaking Of Current Identity And Encryption Systems
Attackers are now harvesting internet data for the time when quantum computers are ready to break today’s identity and encryption systems. CEOs and boards are asking, “What’s our risk? How do we defend ourselves?” It’s a reason why lifetimes for TLS certificates—the identity system for the internet—will drop to 47 days as demanded by Google, Apple and Microsoft. - Kevin Bocek, Venafi, a CyberArk Company
11. AI Training
Quantum computing could soon transform large language model training by accelerating matrix operations and optimization, potentially breaking today’s cost barrier. With skyrocketing demand for AI and breakthroughs like DeepSeek, quantum-accelerated AI may arrive faster than expected, as the extremely well-funded AI industry considers this its most urgent problem. - Reuven Aronashvili, CYE
12. Smarter Water Systems
Municipal and industrial water systems lose an estimated 20% to 30 % of the water they pump through undetected leaks, pressure miscalibration and energy-hungry pumps. Finding the optimal combination of where to place sensors, how to set valve pressures and when to run pumps is a classic combinatorial-optimization headache; the search space explodes as a network expands. It’s a perfect use case for quantum. - Jon Latshaw, Advizex
13. Generation Of Specialized AI Training Data
Quantum computers could impact AI by generating high-fidelity training data for domains like pharmaceuticals, chemistry and materials design, where real-world training data is scarce. They can accurately simulate the complex molecular structures needed for training generative AI algorithms. The synergy of quantum computing and AI is poised to be more transformative than either technology alone. - Stephanie Simmons, Photonic Inc.
14. Cybersecurity Threat Detection
Most of us focus on the risks of quantum in relation to breaking public key cryptography. Quantum will also have a positive impact by preventing and detecting attacks early through its ability to solve complex problems related to pattern recognition and anomaly detection (especially in complex ecosystems). As cybersecurity becomes a priority, investments in quantum are expected sooner rather than later. - Chris Dimitriadis, ISACA
15. Quantum-Enhanced Retirement Plans
By combining AI with quantum computing, we could see quantum-enhanced 401(k) plans that deliver hyper-personalized portfolios. These plans would offer real-time rebalancing based on quantum simulations analyzing millions of combinations. The result is a shield against unexpected market turmoil, providing workers with consistent retirement plans that adapt throughout their careers. - Chris Willis, Domo
16. Financial Risk Modeling
Quantum algorithms enhance financial simulations—such as Monte Carlo methods, used for risk evaluation and scenario building—by reducing the number of qubits required and lowering associated costs. Key applications include improving efficiency, calculating value at risk and modeling market dynamics for traders. Managing these advancements will be essential to prevent unfair monopolization of data and to ensure equitable access to the benefits of quantum computing. - Jeff Schmidt, ECI
17. Agricultural Supply Chain Modeling
One unexpected application of quantum is optimizing supply chains in agriculture. Based on my experience with AI in agri-tech, quantum computing could transform how we model weather, predict yields and optimize commodity logistics, performing much faster than traditional systems. This could bring real-world impact—sooner than most anticipate—in terms of food security and sustainability. - Suri Nuthalapati, Cloudera
18. Renewable Energy Innovation
Quantum computers have a significant advantage over classical computing in terms of simulating complex molecular interactions. This can lead to accelerated research in the area of sustainable and renewable energy development. This is especially critical given the proliferation of EVs and high-energy AI applications. - Arun Kumar, Material
19. Optimized Patient Care Strategies
Quantum computing could accelerate value-based care by solving optimization problems that current AI and cloud systems can only approximate. Even with today’s technology, care plan design across thousands of patients requires extensive manual work. Quantum systems can evaluate all possible interventions and constraints in parallel, enabling faster, more precise and globally optimized care strategies. - David Snow, Jr., Cedar Gate Technologies
20. Greener Cloud Solutions
Quantum computing could significantly impact cloud solutions by transforming how providers optimize resource scheduling, load balancing and traffic routing. Today’s cloud systems rely on classical algorithms that struggle with the complexity of real-time global workloads. Quantum algorithms could dramatically improve efficiency and data center energy use, ensuring greener cloud operations. - Rahul Bhatia, HCL Tech