Quandela Announced Plans for South Korean Quantum Venture
The company aims to build a photonic quantum manufacturing consortium with semiconductor and AI partners by 2028.
Updated on Sept. 28, 2026 in Quantum Computing
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French quantum developer Quandela has announced plans to form a manufacturing consortium with South Korean semiconductor and AI firms. The initiative, announced at a Seoul briefing, focuses on scaling photonic quantum computing hardware.
Why it matters
Scaling photonic quantum systems requires precise semiconductor-level manufacturing, a transition the company aims to accelerate by integrating with high-performance computing (HPC) ecosystems. The project seeks to move photonic components from research prototypes to mass-producible architectures.
Photonic quantum computing platforms typically rely on systems operating at 2-4 Kelvin to maintain stability. Quandela aims to achieve mass production feasibility by integrating photonic circuits and single-photon sources directly with electronic manufacturing workflows.
The players
Quandela
A French technology company specializing in the development of photonic quantum computers and associated hardware.
The details
The collaboration will focus on the heterogeneous integration—a process of assembling multiple disparate components into a single package—of photonic circuits, electronic circuits, and single-photon sources. By leveraging existing semiconductor fabrication, Quandela plans to develop photonic modules that demonstrate mass production feasibility. This shift targets the development of fault-tolerant quantum computing, which requires scaling to high qubit counts beyond current experimental limits.
Timeline
October 2025: Quandela deployed the Lucy photonic QPU at France's TGCC.
September 28, 2026: The company held a press briefing in Seoul to announce the consortium plans.
Next two years: Quandela expects to identify and formalize agreements with local strategic partners.
The Tech Race
This move extends the industry-wide effort to move photonic quantum computing from specialized research labs into high-volume semiconductor supply chains. It follows the precedent established by Quandela's 2025 deployment of the Lucy QPU at France's TGCC.
The effort aims to transition photonic quantum technology into standard high-performance computing (HPC) infrastructure over the next two years. Users in the AI and HPC sectors should monitor the development of photonic modules as the primary indicator for future integration timelines.
The takeaway
The trajectory of this consortium will depend on the successful integration of light-based quantum hardware into conventional semiconductor manufacturing processes. Observers should track the naming of specific South Korean industry partners over the next 24 months as a signal of manufacturing progress.
Further reading
For more on how photonic architectures are scaling, visit Quantum Computing.
Source note: This article includes information reported by 조선일보.
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