Quantum technologies are widely expected to transform computing, sensing, communication, and security. Yet their future is not determined by technical developments alone. It is also shaped by the ways scientists, policymakers, companies, and citizens imagine what quantum technologies are, what they can do, and what role they should play in society.
This project, “Quantum Futures: Sociotechnical Imaginaries and Public Engagement”, investigates how such visions of the future—known as sociotechnical imaginaries—influence the development, governance, and public understanding of quantum science and technology. The project examines imaginaries emerging from scientific, commercial, military, and public contexts and explores how they shape expectations, policies, and innovation pathways.
The project also seeks to develop new ways of engaging diverse publics in discussions about quantum futures. Through international workshops and public deliberative forums in Aarhus, Leiden, and Rome, researchers, experts, policymakers, and citizens will collectively explore how quantum technologies can be imagined and governed in ways that are socially responsible, ethically informed, and open to democratic debate.
