Quantum computing has crossed the threshold from a physics research problem to a genuine manufacturing challenge, Yole Group analyst Eric Mounier argues in a July 23 analysis. Building qubits in a lab is one thing; producing thousands of them reliably on wafers with a controllable supply chain is an entirely different undertaking.
Each quantum modality carries its own manufacturing headaches. Superconducting qubits depend on Josephson junctions — tunnel barriers just a few atoms thick — that have traditionally been created through double-angle shadow evaporation, more of a laboratory technique than a fab-compatible process. Junction uniformity directly determines qubit frequency repeatability, and a spread of just a few percent can ruin a multi-qubit processor.
Yole’s upcoming Quantum Technologies 2026 report examines the full front-end, packaging, assembly, and test flow required to scale quantum processors. Unlike standard CMOS, there is no single quantum process flow — each qubit type demands its own machines, control chain, and yield challenges.
The manufacturing bottleneck is becoming the central constraint on quantum progress. Companies like QuantWare recently raised $178M to build quantum processors at industrial scale, while research institutes including Academia Sinica in Taiwan are calibrating quantum chip fabrication platforms that target production by the end of 2026.
The shift from physics to manufacturing means quantum companies must now compete not just on qubit count and fidelity, but on repeatability, yield, and cost — the same metrics that define every other semiconductor business.
