Confidence that quantum computers will solve major problems that are beyond the reach of traditional computers—a milestone known as quantum advantage—has grown fast in the past twelve months,according to a new report by Boston Consulting Group (BCG), titled,What Happens When “If” Turns to “When” in Quantum Computing?

Investors are moving aggressively to increase the amount they allocate to quantum computing, with two-thirds of all equity investments in the field coming since 2018.

Through 2017, those investments totaled ~$600million, and that amount nearly doubled over the next three years. At the same time, companies are also significantly upping their QC investment, with 20% expected to dedicate resources to quantum technology by 2023, up from just 1% in 2018,according to a recent Gartner prediction.

Jean-Francois Bobier, a BCG partner and director, and a co-author of the report, predicts the acceleration will continue.

“Recent advances and roadmaps from major hardware companies such IBM, Google, Honeywell, IonQ, PsiQuantum and others have increased the confidence that we will have machines powerful enough to tackle important business and society problems before the end of this decade. Impacted companies and governments should get prepared for an accelerated timeline,” said Bobier.

This upturn in investment is driven by major advances in quantum computing technology and predictions of massive performance and profit improvements as a result of this new capability. The BCG research estimates that quantum computing will unlock new value across many industries, creating up to $850 billion in annual value by 2040(see exhibit).