Quantum AI is gaining traction among business leaders, with 62% of respondents in a new SAS survey reporting they are either investing in or actively exploring the technology. The findings suggest growing momentum around quantum computing as the next frontier after traditional AI.
The survey, conducted in April across China, France, Mexico, the UK, and the US, gathered responses from 500 business managers spanning healthcare, government, manufacturing, financial services, and other sectors. More than 70% of participants said they were at least somewhat familiar with the concept of quantum AI, and many see it as a tool to solve problems that exceed the limits of classical computing.
Top areas where respondents see promise include data analytics and machine learning (48%), R&D (41%), and cybersecurity (35%). Supply chain, finance, and marketing were also identified as potential application areas.
Barriers to adoption
Despite this interest, adoption is still constrained by a number of barriers. High costs were cited by 38% of respondents, followed by lack of knowledge (35%), uncertainty about real-world use cases (31%), shortage of trained personnel (31%), and unclear regulations (26%).
SAS is already involved in the practical exploration of the technology. The company is collaborating with several organisations, including a large consumer goods firm, on proof-of-concept projects combining quantum annealing with classical optimisation. These hybrid approaches aim to harness quantum performance gains while using existing infrastructure.
SAS is also working with several tech companies to explore integration between their quantum platforms and SAS analytics tools. These efforts include experiments through SAS Viya Workbench, where developers can access compute environments for data prep, analysis, and AI model development.
While widespread use of quantum AI remains years away, the report points to rising urgency among businesses to understand and prepare for the technology.