• New research identifies 35 telcos that are now investing in quantum technology 
• Telcos in South Korea and China have been particularly active
• Partnerships with vendors are key
• Postquantum cryptography is an early area of focus

The era of quantum computing is still several years away, according to latest projections by some of the technology leaders in this field, but recent research has indicated that telcos are maintaining a consistent level of investment in the area as they prepare for the risks and opportunities that lie ahead.

 According to the latest update of Q-Beat, a tracker of quantum technology deployments across telcos by research and consulting company STL Partners, a total of 35 telcos worldwide have publicly disclosed their efforts to utilise quantum technology.

 Marina Koytcheva, research director at STL Partners, noted that 2025 “was good for telcos’ progress with quantum tech”. The global telecom industry recorded 23 new developments in the second half of 2025, as many as 2024 in its entirety.

 “This is nothing like the boom we see in other tech areas like AI, but it shows a steady level of investment and achievement by telcos worldwide,” added Koytcheva. 

Opportunities, and threats

Speaking to TelecomTV, Koytcheva explained that STL Partners launched the Q-Beat tracker last year in recognition of this growing investment trend. The research firm broadly splits telco quantum activity into two “buckets”, of which one includes measures to protect against the threats that will arise for telcos and enterprises as quantum computing emerges.

The other bucket focuses on how quantum technology will be used to underpin new opportunities, including quantum communication, the use of quantum computing to optimise operations, and quantum sensing.

Koytcheva said there is very little activity in the latter category as yet, noting that it is more related to the internet of things (IoT). On the other hand, there are some examples of telcos making use of quantum computers for network optimisation purposes.

Quantum communication, meanwhile, is very suited to telcos for obvious reasons. “Telcos create these quantum-secure ways of transport, transmitting data through the quantum properties of the matter and, ultimately, that serves the same purpose as the protection from quantum threats, because it really gives enterprise customers [in areas such as] financial services or healthcare or government or defence, an ultra-secure way of transmitting data,” she said.

Koytcheva emphasised that it is still very early days for the technology. “It’s still a lot about experimentation, proof of concept, trying to figure out what the best bet is, because there are different ways in which you can achieve the same thing, potentially, whether it’s quantum communication, or post-quantum cryptography.”

She added: “But if there is one thing that is progressing relatively quickly compared to the others, it is post-quantum cryptography. So it is one way to obviously protect against cyber threats now and in the future. I think half of the announcements in the second half of last year were related to post-quantum cryptography. And partly that’s because telcos can see the timeline when enterprises will have to be post-quantum cryptography ready.”

She also made it clear that telcos will not be able to do this alone and, typically, partner with companies that are particularly invested in quantum technology. Here, STL has identified Adtran, Arqit, ID Quantique, IBM, Nokia, Toshiba, Thales and others – all of which featured in TelecomTV’s most recent Quantum-Safe Networking Market Perception Report (a free-to-download DSP Leaders report).   

In terms of development at regional level, Koytcheva said there is a lot of activity in South Korea, with SK Telecom “by far the most active”. Chinese and Japanese telcos are also investing in the field, as are Singtel, Telstra in Australia, large European groups, such as Deutsche Telekom, Orange, Telefonica, BT and Vodafone, as well as North American players, including AT&T, Verizon and Telus. In the second half of 2025, Middle Eastern operators e& and STC and Malaysia’s Maxis also began investing in quantum tech.

“It’s really a small group of 35 so far,” Koytcheva said, noting that smaller telcos would not have the resources to invest in a technology that will only start paying off a few years from now. There are some exceptions, including Turkcell and Telecom Italia’s Sparkle unit, she added. 

Another trend noted by STL is that satellite players are also starting to announce work in the area: Hispasat and SES are two examples. “This provides an opportunity for telcos to partner with their satellite counterparts in the quest for safe quantum-based communications,” the research company said. 

In conclusion, Koytcheva said telcos built momentum with quantum technology in 2025, “and we should expect this trend to continue in 2026. STL Partners’ experts predict that the number of telcos with commercially launched quantum technology-based solutions will double this year, albeit from a low starting point”. 

To keep up to date with the latest quantum-safe networking developments, check out TelecomTV’s dedicated quantum technology page.

- Anne Morris, Contributing Editor, TelecomTV