NEC spent decades developing quantum hardware, but it's time to leave

Its researchers produced the earliest known solid-state qubit, a milestone still referenced widely across the quantum computing field.

Unlike NEC, IBM remained committed to quantum hardware and grew into a leading global developer of quantum computing systems overall.

That contrast makes NEC's exit relatively rare among the original corporate pioneers of quantum computing hardware development.

NEC has not formally described the move as a complete withdrawal from quantum computing research.

Quantum computing hardware remains a notably costly pursuit, and returns on investment can take many additional years to materialize fully.