Quantum-Sensor Navigation Global Market Report 2025

The quantum-sensor navigation market size has grown exponentially in recent years. It will grow from $0.72 billion in 2024 to $0.89 billion in 2025 at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 23.2%. The growth in the historic period was driven by increasing emphasis on national security, rising reliance on resilient navigation systems, growth in global maritime trade activities, expanding use of quantum research in academia, and increasing government-backed exploration missions.

The quantum-sensor navigation market size is expected to see exponential growth in the next few years. It will grow to $2.03 billion in 2029 at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 22.8%. The growth in the forecast period is driven by rising adoption in unmanned systems, growing demand for secure military navigation, expansion of deep-sea exploration projects, increasing focus on space-based missions, and the need for precise positioning in smart transportation. Key trends in the forecast period include advancements in miniaturized quantum sensors, development of hybrid navigation systems, innovations in portable quantum devices, progress in commercial maritime applications, and the development of quantum-enabled aerospace solutions.

The increasing deployment of drones is expected to drive the growth of the quantum-sensor navigation market. Drones, or unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), can be remotely controlled or operate autonomously for tasks such as surveillance, delivery, agriculture, and photography. The rise in drone usage is driven by technological advancements that make drones more affordable, efficient, and versatile for various industrial and commercial purposes. Quantum-sensor navigation enhances drone performance by providing highly accurate positioning and navigation without relying on the global positioning system (GPS), enabling precise operations in GPS-denied or challenging environments such as indoors, underground, or in densely built-up areas. For example, in June 2025, the UK Ministry of Defence announced an investment of $477.74 million (£350 million) to expand Ukraine’s drone fleet, aiming to increase the number from 10,000 in 2024 to 100,000. As a result, the growing use of drones is driving the quantum-sensor navigation market forward.

Leading companies in the quantum-sensor navigation market are focusing on developing advancements such as field-tested quantum navigation systems to improve positioning accuracy, reliability, and performance in GPS-denied environments. A field-tested quantum navigation system uses quantum technologies such as quantum sensors or quantum accelerometers and has been tested in real-world settings to ensure its accuracy, reliability, and operational performance outside of laboratory conditions. For instance, in April 2025, Q-CTRL PTY LTD., an Australia-based software company, introduced Ironstone Opal, a compact quantum navigation system designed to enhance the stability, performance, and reliability of quantum technologies. Ironstone Opal delivers precise positioning without GPS, leveraging advanced quantum sensors combined with AI-powered software. It offers up to 50 times greater accuracy than traditional GPS backup systems and is fully passive, unjammable, and undetectable, making it ideal for GPS-denied environments. Its main purpose is to enable secure and resilient navigation for autonomous vehicles, aircraft, and defense platforms, ensuring mission success even when GPS signals are unavailable or compromised.

In March 2025, Lockheed Martin Corporation, a US-based aerospace and defense company, teamed up with Q-CTRL and AOSense Inc. to advance the development and deployment of quantum navigation technologies. This collaboration aims to design and transition a quantum-enabled Inertial Navigation System that provides precise, reliable navigation without GPS, ensuring operational effectiveness in GPS-denied environments for both military and potential civilian applications. Q-CTRL is an Australia-based software company, while AOSense Inc. is a US-based developer of quantum technologies for navigation.

Major players in the quantum-sensor navigation market are Raytheon Technologies Corporation, Lockheed Martin Corporation, Northrop Grumman Corporation, Honeywell International Incorporated, Thales Group, Keysight Technologies, Rohde & Schwarz GmbH & Co. KG, Exail, Teledyne e2v Ltd., Mesa Quantum Inc., Q.ANT, Atomionics Corporation, Q-CTRL Pty Ltd., Dirac Labs Inc., Infleqtion Inc., AOSense Inc., ColdQuanta Inc., SandboxAQ Inc., Aquark Technologies, Bosch Quantum Sensing, and KWAN-TEK Co. Ltd.

North America was the largest region in the quantum-sensor navigation market in 2024. Asia-Pacific is expected to be the fastest-growing region in the forecast period. The regions covered in quantum-sensor navigation report are Asia-Pacific, Western Europe, Eastern Europe, North America, South America, Middle East and Africa.

Note that the outlook for this market is being affected by rapid changes in trade relations and tariffs globally. The report will be updated prior to delivery to reflect the latest status, including revised forecasts and quantified impact analysis. The report’s Recommendations and Conclusions sections will be updated to give strategies for entities dealing with the fast-moving international environment.

The sharp hike in U.S. tariffs and the associated trade disputes in spring 2025 are notably impacting the aerospace and defense sector by raising costs for titanium, carbon fiber composites, and avionics materials largely sourced from global suppliers. Defense contractors, locked into fixed-price government contracts, absorb these added costs, while commercial aerospace firms face airline pushback on higher aircraft prices. Delays in component shipments due to customs bottlenecks further disrupt tight production schedules for jets and satellites. The industry is responding by stockpiling critical materials, seeking waivers for defense-related imports, and collaborating with allied nations to diversify supply chain.

The quantum-sensor navigation market research report is one of a series of new reports that provides quantum-sensor navigation market statistics, including quantum-sensor navigation industry global market size, regional shares, competitors with a quantum-sensor navigation market share, detailed quantum-sensor navigation market segments, market trends and opportunities, and any further data you may need to thrive in the quantum-sensor navigation industry. This quantum-sensor navigation market research report delivers a complete perspective of everything you need, with an in-depth analysis of the current and future scenario of the industry.

Quantum-sensor navigation is a navigation technique that leverages quantum technologies, such as atom interferometry, to measure motion and position with exceptional precision. Unlike GPS, it does not rely on external signals, making it resistant to jamming or signal loss. By detecting minute changes in acceleration and rotation, quantum sensors provide accurate positioning in environments where traditional systems fail, making them highly valuable for submarines, aircraft, and spacecraft.

The primary component types of quantum-sensor navigation are sensors, control systems, software, and others. Sensors are quantum devices capable of precisely measuring acceleration, rotation, magnetic fields, or time. These systems employ technologies such as cold atom, NV-center, optical atomic clocks, and others, and are implemented on platforms including airborne, land, naval, and space. They are applied in aerospace and defense, marine, automotive, industrial, and other sectors, serving end-users including commercial organizations, military, research institutions, and others.

The countries covered in the quantum-sensor navigation market report are Australia, Brazil, China, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Japan, Russia, South Korea, UK, USA, Canada, Italy, Spain.

The quantum-sensor navigation market includes revenues earned by entities by providing services such as submarine and underwater navigation, aerospace navigation, and autonomous vehicle guidance. The market value includes the value of related goods sold by the service provider or included within the service offering. The quantum-sensor navigation market also includes sales of quantum accelerometers, quantum gyroscopes, and quantum magnetometers. Values in this market are ‘factory gate’ values, that is, the value of goods sold by the manufacturers or creators of the goods, whether to other entities (including downstream manufacturers, wholesalers, distributors, and retailers) or directly to end customers. The value of goods in this market includes related services sold by the creators of the goods.

The market value is defined as the revenues that enterprises gain from the sale of goods and/or services within the specified market and geography through sales, grants, or donations in terms of the currency (in USD unless otherwise specified).

The revenues for a specified geography are consumption values that are revenues generated by organizations in the specified geography within the market, irrespective of where they are produced. It does not include revenues from resales along the supply chain, either further along the supply chain or as part of other products.

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