Quantum in Defence: What Türkiye’s 2027 Annual Program and the HIT-Quantum Call Actually Say

Türkiye’s 2027 Annual Program lists quantum technologies, artificial intelligence, autonomous systems and hypersonics among ongoing defence-industry R&D activities, and says R&D will be carried out under the Quantum Technology Roadmap. One point is often muddled: the 300 million dollar HIT-Quantum call is not a defence-industry or SSB programme. It is a call under the HIT-30 programme of the Ministry of Industry and Technology.

Last updated: 2 November 2026

What the 2027 Annual Program says

The Annual Program is prepared by the Presidency’s Strategy and Budget Office. We could not reach the official text, so the defence section is read here as reported by Anadolu Agency. According to that report, R&D work will be carried out under the Quantum Technology Roadmap, and activity in AI, autonomous systems and hypersonic technology will continue. The same text sets 2027 targets: localisation at 84 percent, defence and aerospace exports of 11.5 billion dollars, turnover of 28 billion dollars and roughly 138,000 jobs. We cover those in our 2027 Annual Program article.

The wording is one of intent. The report gives no project budgets or timetables, so we give none either.

What is the Quantum Technology Roadmap?

We could not find a published roadmap document. A July 2025 press report said a TÜBİTAK-led working group, with public bodies, universities, industry and civil society, was drafting it and that a first draft was nearly complete. It is described as a national framework, not a defence-specific paper, and how defence will draw on it cannot be stated until the text is public.

HIT-Quantum: whose call, and for what?

HIT-Quantum sits under the Ministry of Industry and Technology’s HIT-30 High Technology Investment Programme. The ministry’s call page describes three needs: high-capacity infrastructure able to offer quantum computing services; a scalable quantum hardware and software ecosystem for research centres, universities and industry; and value-added solutions and skilled people built on that infrastructure. The stated aim is to strengthen the national quantum ecosystem and make Türkiye a regional leader. The page carries no budget figure; the 300 million dollar number appears in press coverage of the four-call package Minister Mehmet Fatih Kacır announced in October 2025.

In short, it is mostly a civilian computing-infrastructure call. It may help defence indirectly, but it is not a defence budget line.

Why quantum matters for militaries

• Sensing: The European Commission’s July 2025 Quantum Europe Strategy names gravimetry, magnetometry and inertial navigation as defence-relevant capabilities. See our pieces on Japan’s quantum sensor for submarine detection and the quantum-clock radar network trial.
• Communications: Secure links such as quantum key distribution; the UK strategy sets a quantum network goal for 2035.
• Computing: Simulation and optimisation, still at an early stage.
• Cryptography: NIST published post-quantum standards FIPS 203, 204 and 205 in August 2024. Our overview of quantum technologies and military applications (in Turkish) covers the field.

Global market estimates and export context

McKinsey’s April 2026 Quantum Technology Monitor puts the global quantum technology market at 60 to 100 billion dollars by 2035, of which 43 to 71 billion is computing. The 2025 edition had projected about 97 billion dollars in total, with sensing at 7 to 10 billion and communication at 11 to 15 billion. These are global market estimates, not forecasts of any Turkish revenue.

The export figure, by contrast, is hard data. SSB President Haluk Görgün announced, and the SSB 2025 Activity Report confirms, that defence and aerospace exports reached 10.054 billion dollars in 2025 (9.87 billion in goods, 184 million in services).

How others compare

The United Kingdom runs a National Quantum Strategy with 2.5 billion pounds committed over ten years from 2024; its 2030 aims include satellite-independent quantum navigation and networked sensors that cover defence. The EU published its Quantum Europe Strategy in July 2025 and promised a Quantum Sensing Space and Defence Technology Roadmap by 2026. Türkiye is best placed in this picture as a country still shaping its national calls and roadmap; results cannot yet be measured. SSB’s priorities are summarised in SSB’s future technology areas (Turkish).

FAQ

Who owns the HIT-Quantum call?

The Ministry of Industry and Technology, under HIT-30. It is not an SSB programme.

Where is quantum used in defence?

Mainly sensing and navigation, secure communications, computing and post-quantum cryptography.

How big is the global quantum market expected to be?

McKinsey’s 2026 edition gives 60 to 100 billion dollars by 2035.

Does the Annual Program give quantum budgets or project counts?

Not in the report we could access; it only says R&D will be carried out.

Sources

• Ministry of Industry and Technology, HIT-30 calls: https://hit30.sanayi.gov.tr/cagrilar
• SSB 2025 Activity Report: https://www.ssb.gov.tr/storage/img/2025-yili-faaliyet-raporu.pdf
• Anadolu Agency, 2027 Annual Program report: https://www.foreks.com/haber/detay/6ae06435b16ee1777f55f9e8/AA/tr/savunma-sanayisinde-yerlilik-artacak-kuresel-rekabet-gucu-yukselecek-27-10-26/
• McKinsey, The Year of Quantum (2025): https://www.mckinsey.com/capabilities/tech-and-ai/our-insights/the-year-of-quantum-from-concept-to-reality-in-2025
• PostQuantum on McKinsey Quantum Technology Monitor 2026: https://postquantum.com/industry-news/mckinsey-quantum-monitor-2026/
• European Commission, Quantum Europe Strategy: https://digital-strategy.ec.europa.eu/en/library/quantum-europe-strategy
• UK Government, National Quantum Strategy Missions: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/national-quantum-strategy/national-quantum-strategy-missions
• NIST, Post-Quantum Cryptography FIPS: https://csrc.nist.gov/news/2024/postquantum-cryptography-fips-approved