Author｜Li Xin

Editor｜Chen Xiaoran

// The competition over technological routes intensifies, with commercialization still facing tests

On August 5, Shanghai Turing Quantum Computing Technology Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as Turing Quantum) had its IPO Tutoring registration (tutoring and filing for IPO) accepted by the Shanghai Securities Regulatory Bureau, officially making a push for an A-share listing.

In just five years since its establishment, this photonic quantum computing unicorn has seen its valuation exceed 7 billion yuan, joining the race to go public in the quantum computing sector.

As multiple peers advance towards listings, the competition between photonic and superconducting routes intensifies, with both the prospects and challenges of quantum technology commercialization becoming increasingly prominent.

Founded in 2021, Turing Quantum was established by Professor Jin Xianmin from Shanghai Jiao Tong University, with its technological foundation built upon the Integrated Quantum Information Technology Research Center at the university.

Founder Jin Xianmin boasts over two decades of experience in quantum information and integrated photonics research. After returning from the University of Oxford, he assembled a team to embark on the industrialization of photonic quantum computing.

According to Tianyancha, Turing Quantum has completed eight rounds of financing since its inception, with a total financing amount exceeding 1 billion yuan and its valuation surpassing 7 billion yuan.

2026 marks a critical financing milestone for Turing Quantum, with successive B+ round, B++ round, and C round financings secured within the year. The C round was co-led by the National Venture Capital Guidance Fund's Yangtze River Delta Fund and Pudong New Area's state-owned assets, marking the first direct investment project by this national-level guidance fund in the quantum technology sector.

Furthermore, Turing Quantum's shareholder list is diverse, comprising 47 shareholders including national-level industrial funds, Shanghai local state-owned assets, leading venture capital firms, and industrial capital. The controlling shareholder is Shanghai Silang Quantum Technology Co., Ltd., holding a 34.10% stake.

Looking at the industry, the quantum computing sector is experiencing a wave of listings.

In September 2025, Origin Quantum completed its IPO Tutoring registration (tutoring and filing for IPO) with the Anhui Securities Regulatory Bureau and secured nearly 3 billion yuan in Pre-IPO financing in 2026. In July 2026, Boson Quantum completed its Pre-IPO financing and filed for IPO Tutoring registration (tutoring and filing for IPO). Additionally, CIQTEK completed its new share subscription on July 31.

In just one year, companies in the sector have transitioned from Intensive financing ( Intensive financing , intensive financing) in the primary market to Fully transition to the capital market and overcome challenges ( Fully transition to the capital market and overcome challenges , making a comprehensive push into the capital market), officially igniting a battle for the title of the "first quantum computing company to go public."

Among the multiple technological routes in quantum computing, Turing Quantum has chosen the photonic quantum approach.

Unlike superconducting quantum computers, which require an extremely harsh operating environment near absolute zero, photonic quantum devices can operate at room temperature, naturally aligning with existing optical communication systems and offering unique advantages in engineering implementation.

According to Turing Quantum's official website, the company is currently the only enterprise in China with teams possessing expertise in "chip fabrication + quantum computing + photonic computing + artificial intelligence technology," with a team size reaching 200. Building on this foundation, it has established a fully autonomous stack encompassing photonic chip design and manufacturing, complete machine integration, quantum algorithms, and quantum-classical hybrid clusters.

In 2025, Turing Quantum jointly established China's first pilot line for photonic chips, achieving large-scale production of wafer-level thin-film lithium niobate photonic chips. These chips can integrate thousands of optical components onto a single chip, with research and development iteration cycles compressed from annual to monthly intervals, effectively accelerating product iteration speeds.

In terms of its product matrix, Turing Quantum has launched two generations of photonic quantum computing systems.

The TuringQGen2 large-scale hybrid integrated system can achieve coherent manipulation of 56 photons, with a solving capacity exceeding 100,000 variables, and can be directly deployed in conventional data centers.

In 2026, Turing Quantum completed compatibility with domestic GPUs from Hygon, Moore Threads, and Biren Technology, while launching the QAgent platform to encapsulate quantum computing power for AI agents to utilize.

At the commercialization level, Turing Quantum's revenue growth has been remarkable. The company's revenue was merely 500,000 yuan in 2022, surpassed 10 million yuan in 2023, and exceeded 100 million yuan in order volume in 2025, with a compound annual growth rate reaching 200%. Its business model covers hardware whole-machine sales and quantum computing power services.

Currently, Turing Quantum's technological solutions have been implemented in the biopharmaceutical field, leveraging quantum computing power to assist in new drug development and gradually opening up application scenarios in the real economy.

At the policy level, continuous dividends are being released. The 2026 government work report designated quantum technology as a key future industry for cultivation.

The Shanghai Stock Exchange plans to add a secondary industry classification for quantum technology on the STAR Market, with regulators explicitly supporting quantum hard-tech companies to list on the STAR Market, thereby opening up capitalization channels for the industry.

According to forecasts by the Photon Box Research Institute, the global quantum computing industry is expected to grow from 5 billion US dollars in 2024 to 800 billion US dollars in 2035, offering vast long-term growth potential.

Domestic investment and financing are also heating up, with continuous increases in quantum sector financing and industrial capital remaining optimistic about the sector's long-term prospects. Data from CVSource by ChinaVenture shows that in the first half of 2026, there were 41 financing events in China's quantum computing sector, surpassing the total for the entire year of 2025.

However, a significant gap remains between industrial reality and technological visions. At this stage, general-purpose fault-tolerant quantum computers still face numerous fundamental scientific challenges, with a long road ahead before large-scale adoption becomes feasible.

Multiple routes, including superconducting, photonic, and neutral atom approaches, are developing in parallel, with no consensus yet on which path will achieve fault-tolerant computing first.

At the valuation level, there is speculation and game theory ( game theory , game-playing). Turing Quantum's 7 billion yuan valuation corresponds to a revenue scale still in its early cultivation stage, with limited short-term profitability.

Globally, companies are still primarily delivering prototypes and pilot projects, with large-scale sustainable commercialization cases remaining scarce. In the future, the capital market will continuously test companies' technological iteration speeds, order conversion capabilities, and levels of sustained R&D investment.

From the laboratory to the capital market, Turing Quantum has achieved this transition in just five years. However, the current quantum computing industry is still in its early development stages, and the IPO is merely a new starting point for growth.

Whether it can continue to solidify its technological advantages in photonic chips, continuously expand stable commercial orders, and balance high R&D investment with revenue growth will determine the long-term competitiveness of this photonic quantum leader in the lengthy race ahead.