The Global Centre for Risk and Innovation (GCRI)
Quantum technologies raise questions of security, equity, dual use and honesty about what they can do. Export controls restrict trade in some quantum items, a few countries and firms hold most capability, and inflated claims can misdirect public money. This page sets out the governance questions quantum innovation raises, how they are being addressed, and what evidence serves the governments, funders and researchers shaping it.
Responsible quantum innovation · Crypto inventory · Wave 4
| Archive signing | RSA-2048 | 18 | ML-DSA hybrid | Piloting |
| VPN gateway | ECDH | 10 | ML-KEM hybrid | Planned |
| Payments HSM | RSA-3072 | 9 | Vendor roadmap | Blocked |
| Web TLS | ECDHE | 2 | Hybrid key exchange | Done |
Fig.Post-quantum migration tracker. Design wireframe with placeholder names and illustrative values, not a record or a live system.
Responsible quantum innovation is the practice of developing quantum technologies with attention to security, equity, dual use and honest claims. Export controls restrict some trade, capability concentrates in a few countries and firms, and inflated claims can misdirect public money and security planning.
For responsible quantum innovation, in GCRI's spatial-intelligence reading, the map opens on night lights, population density and true-colour imagery with true colour from NASA GIBS, framed on Japan and Korea; every other NASA layer, live feed and forecast waits in the layer list.
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NASA GIBS / EOSDIS · ASTER GDEM (METI, NASA) · Blue Marble (NASA) · © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL) · Natural Earth
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For responsible quantum innovation, in GCRI's spatial-intelligence reading, the map opens on night lights, population density and true-colour imagery with true colour from NASA GIBS, framed on Japan and Korea; every other NASA layer, live feed and forecast waits in the layer list.Satellite and model products as NASA publishes them, each with its own date; indicators, not assessments of any place; claim ceiling INTEGRATED.
Layers and dates
Dual-use, equity and uncertainty. The dossier below sets out how the risk develops, what is measured, where the data come from, how it is modelled and who decides.
Quantum computing threatens current cryptography and quantum sensing has military uses, so the same research serves civilian and security ends.
Several countries control exports of specified quantum computers, components and software, affecting collaboration and markets.
Most investment, patents and expertise sit in a few countries and firms, raising concerns about an emerging quantum divide.
Overstated claims of near-term advantage can distort funding, procurement and security planning. Claims discipline is part of responsible innovation.
Each term as this page uses it. Where a standard-setting body defines the term, the wording follows that body.
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| Dual use | Technology or research that can serve both civilian and military purposes. |
| Export control | A government restriction on exporting specified items, technology or software. |
| Responsible innovation | Anticipating and governing the effects of new technology together with society. |
Each indicator carries its unit, its cadence, the kind of source behind it and the evidence label a value would carry. No values are shown: a programme supplies them under its own authority.
| Indicator | Unit | Cadence | Source type | Label |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Countries with national quantum strategies | count | annual | Government strategy documents | OFFICIAL |
| Export control measures on quantum items | count | per change | Government notices | OFFICIAL |
| Share of quantum patents by country | percent | annual | Patent databases | OBSERVED |
| International research collaborations in quantum | count of co-authored papers by country pair | annual | Bibliometric data | OBSERVED |
| Responsible innovation frameworks adopted | count | per assessment | Programme documentation | DECLARED |
| Public engagement activities on quantum | count | annual | Programme reports | REPORTED |
The topic as a computational graph: named sources feed the methods, an evidence review gates the outputs, and the decisions stay with the authorities that hold them.
Fig. 02Nodes carry their type, two metric rows and a state; connectors show what feeds what; dashed frames name the owners; the timeline is the cadence. Design of the pipeline, not a record of a run.
Named public datasets and institutional records, each with its licence class. Sources by agreement are used only under their terms and never republished.
| Source | What it gives | Licence class |
|---|---|---|
| Government export control lists and notices | Controls on quantum items | Public records, licence per government |
| OECD and UNESCO work on quantum and society | Policy and ethics perspectives | Public, terms per organization |
| World Economic Forum quantum governance principles | Principles for responsible quantum computing | Public, WEF terms |
| Bibliometric databases such as OpenAlex | Collaboration and publication patterns | Open, CC0 |
| Patent databases | Geographic distribution of patenting | Free access, terms per office |
Quantum Technologies prepares evidence. The decisions below are taken by the authorities named, under their own rules, and never by the platform.
| Who decides | The question | Evidence this page serves |
|---|---|---|
| Governments | How to balance security controls with open science and collaboration | Governance reviews; export control evidence |
| Research funders | How to assess quantum claims and fund responsibly | Claims assessment guides |
| International organizations | How to support access for countries with little capability | Concentration analyses |
Responsible innovation questions are asked before capabilities arrive.
Dual use is intrinsic: the same computers, sensors and communication systems serve civilian and security purposes, and the cryptographic threat has obvious intelligence value. Governments respond with export controls and research security measures, which can also slow open science and international collaboration.
Equity risks arise because capability is concentrated. Countries and organizations with fewer resources may be last to migrate their cryptography and least able to benefit from applications. Hype is itself a risk: inflated expectations misdirect resources and erode trust when they are not met, while dismissiveness can delay necessary security work. Responsible practice therefore pairs every claim with its evidence base and its uncertainty, and invites independent specialists to test it.
| Method or data | What it shows | Limits |
|---|---|---|
| Technology assessment and foresight | Plausible developments and their implications | Foresight is not prediction |
| Ethical, legal and social analysis | Rights, fairness and accountability questions | Normative judgements differ across societies |
| Stakeholder and public engagement | Concerns and values of those affected | Engagement can be shallow or unrepresentative |
| Life-cycle assessment | Energy and material footprint | Data on emerging systems is limited |
The current service level is R0: information and enquiries. An enquiry receives a reference and names the next step; applications, payments, compute allocations and registrations open only when their team, terms and review capacity exist.