UK Launches Quantum Standards Network to Coordinate National Standards Efforts

Insider Brief

• The UK Government has launched the Quantum Standards Network (QSN), led by NPL and supported by industry, government, and standards organizations to coordinate quantum standards development.
• The initiative focuses on skills development, international standards engagement, and support for UK companies adopting and contributing to quantum standards.
• The QSN supports the UK’s National Quantum Strategy and aims to strengthen the country’s role in shaping global frameworks for quantum technologies.
• Photo from Pexels by Peter Muscutt.

PRESS RELEASE — The UK Government has today announced the launch of the Quantum Standards Network (QSN). The initiative will be led by NPL, alongside partners including BSI, UKRI, the National Quantum Computing Centre, National Cyber Security Centre and UKQuantum. It is funded by the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT).

The QSN is a national initiative that will coordinate the UK’s efforts to influence and support use of standards for quantum technologies. The network brings together government, industry and standards bodies to collaborate, share good practice and ensure the UK plays a decisive role in establishing the frameworks that will underpin the next generation of quantum innovation.

The launch of the network supports the UK Government’s National Quantum Strategy, which sets out an ambition for the UK to become a leading quantum enabled economy by 2033. Standards form a crucial part of this ambition, supporting responsible innovation, accelerating commercialisation, and ensuring quantum technologies are secure and trusted.

The network builds on the pilot from 2023 to 2025, initiated by NPL, DSIT, BSI and UKQuantum, which brought together leaders from across the UK quantum landscape to test new collaborative models and identify priority areas for future standards-focused collaboration.

The Quantum Standards Network will deliver impact across three core pillars:

Education and skills development: creating training resources and guidance to build UK expertise in quantum standardisation.

International leadership: strengthening the UK’s presence in key global standards forums and ensuring UK priorities are reflected in the emerging global regulatory landscape.

UK coordination and industry support: providing resources and guidance to support SMEs and startups engaging with standards, convening the quantum community and aligning standardisation priorities across sectors.

The development and application of quantum technologies, from quantum computing, quantum sensing and timing to quantum communications, is advancing rapidly. As countries around the world step up investment, the development and use of standards has become a pivotal arena for international competitiveness.

To find out more and register your interest for early access, please visit: https://qsn.org.uk/

Dr Peter Thompson, CBE, CEO at NPL said: “We are delighted to be leading the establishment of the Quantum Standards Network which marks a major step in ensuring the UK can lead the global conversation on quantum. Standards are the backbone of responsible, scalable innovation. By coordinating expertise across the UK quantum ecosystem, the network will accelerate technology adoption, boost UK competitiveness and support the safe and ethical development of quantum technologies.” 

Science Minister Lord Vallance said: “Quantum could bring benefits to our society as significant as those we are seeing with AI, with the potential to deliver new medicines, better public services and protect our finances.

The UK’s quantum sector is already a global leader. With the National Quantum Standards Network, we will accelerate its growth, meaning more British jobs, and investment into our economy from all over the world.”

Scott Steedman CBE, Director-General, Standards at BSI, said: “Quantum technologies hold extraordinary potential to transform industries and address the most complex challenges facing society. The new Quantum Standards Network (QSN) will coordinate the collaborative effort essential to build a trusted market framework and unlock that potential by enabling the commercialisation, adoption and scaling of quantum technologies.

“As a strategic partner in the QSN and the national standards body, BSI is committed to coordinating the UK expert voice on standards. The QSN will complement and inform the UK’s international influence, including our work at IEC and ISO where we hold the Secretariat for the IEC/ISO Joint Technical Committee for quantum technologies, ensuring UK priorities will directly support the global standards that are essential to the future of this technology.”