Quantum Technologies Strategic Imperatives for Health and Healthcare Leaders 2025

Deliverers: the providers of health-related services From hospitals and clinics to pharmacy chains and care networks, deliverers are at the front line of patient care, turning innovation into tangible health outcomes. In recent years, they have rolled out telemedicine platforms, started using AI to support diagnostics and triage, and connected patient data through EHRs. These tools have helped speed up care by reducing manual work and facilitating early diagnosis of illnesses. But many systems still rely on outdated technology, which cannot easily and securely share data or employ policies that don’t encourage innovation. Modernizing healthcare delivery will require building clear pathways and technical trust to drive the adoption of advanced technologies like quantum diagnostics, and ensure innovation that enhances patient care across multiple dimensions. Enablers: the catalysts of the quantum for health ecosystem Regulators, standards bodies, infrastructure providers and cloud platforms shape how new technologies are adopted and scaled in healthcare. In recent years, they have introduced fast-track approvals for digital health tools, launched frameworks for health data interoperability like Fast Healthcare Interoperability Resources (FHIR), and expanded access to cloud and high-performance computing for genome sequencing and large-scale clinical research. These advances have helped researchers and providers build, share and deploy new technologies more effectively. Regulatory guidance for emerging technologies in clinical use is still limited, however, and many systems lack the capacity to manage the growing volume of imaging, genomic and longitudinal patient data that is essential for personalized medicine. To enable the future of healthcare, regulators and industry must collaborate to create clear policies and standards for emerging tools and ensure the infrastructure exists to securely store, process and exchange complex health data. Limitations of classical technologies in health and life sciences The frontier of health and life sciences has been shaped by technological advances, but also by the inherent limitations of classical solutions. As observed in Table 1, the development of new underlying quantum technologies is now enabling a wave of innovation aimed at meeting critical strategic needs. Quantum technology as a catalyst for disruptive healthcare transformation Research and biomedical initiatives around the globe are already piloting the first wave of quantum technologies in healthcare and life sciences. Precision medicine, accelerated drug discovery, enhanced diagnostics and secure data transmission are all promising areas of research and focus. The following sections dig deeper into the value chain for creators, deliverers and enablers, to understand how quantum technologies can be a catalyst for disruptive healthcare transformation. Regulatory guidance for emerging technologies in clinical use is still limited and many systems lack the capacity to manage the growing volume of imaging, genomic and longitudinal patient data. Quantum innovations across the value chain to meet strategic needs in healthcare TABLE 1 Industry function Current constraint Strategic need Quantum response Discovery and developmentDespite major AI advances, key gaps remain in predicting toxicity, translating lab results to real- world biology, generalizing to new targets and interpreting underlying mechanisms, limiting precision in next-generation therapeutic design.Predictive and measurement tools that reduce cost, time and uncertainty in early-stage research, especially in drug development.Quantum chemistry and machine learning for accurate modelling of molecular and biological systems; quantum sensing for ultra-precise detection and characterization at the molecular and cellular levels. Detection and diagnosisDiagnostic tools miss early signals or require invasive methods.High-sensitivity, real-time detection to enable early intervention.Quantum sensors for real-time, non-invasive detection of magnetic and bioelectric signals. Decision and deliveryGrowing risk of data breaches and fragmented digital systems.Secure, integrated infrastructure for AI-driven healthcare delivery.Quantum and post-quantum communication systems to secure EHRs, clinical workflows and AI pipelines. Optimization and operationsClassical optimization is too slow for real-time decision-making in complex systems.Adaptive, large-scale optimization to manage care delivery and resource use.Quantum and hybrid solvers for dynamic scheduling and logistics in hospital and payer- provider networks. Source: World Economic Forum and Accenture. Quantum Technologies: Strategic Imperatives for Health and Healthcare Leaders 9