QSHIFT: Decision-Making in the Age of Quantum AI

Advances and investment in quantum computing (QC) have the potential to significantly affect how we solve complex problems across industries. While still in its infancy today, QC could, for instance, significantly increase the computational power of existing machine learning systems, resulting in Quantum AI. This evolution, which we call the QShift, contrasts with a severe lack of social scientific reflection on its wider implications. While state-of-the-art research on QC focuses largely on the computer and natural science perspective, we zoom-in on the human implications of and contributions to this emerging development.

Our collaborative research project aims to provide the first systematic exploration of the cultural and social significance of Quantum AI through three lenses. First, we will explore the importance of technological narratives related to QC and Quantum AI. Framing, particularly in the early stages of technology research, can have a significant impact on the diversity of research agendas and participating disciplines, as well as on stakeholders who drive implementation. Our aim is to parse out the impact of narratives from a pan-European perspective to make sure that the public good and the beneficial impact for citizens plays an equal role in this early stage of research. Second, we will explore the impact of QC on decision-making processes ranging from individual actors to collective organisms. Accessibility and distributive justice play a key role in computer-aided decision-making and precautions have to be taken to ensure that Quantum AI will not increase tensions towards undesirable disparities. Third, we will examine QC’s systemic perturbation of foundational legal principles and processes. We aim to discern the legal implications of introducing Quantum AI into responsible and accountable decision-making and analyse to what extent such computer-assisted decision-making can be said to enjoy democratic legitimacy.

Through this project, we will provide an empirical basis for the identification of factors that influence the trajectories of Quantum AI. We will also develop tools to foster Quantum AI literacy, i.e. the ability to understand the strengths and limitations of various applications. Our results will equip people to better anticipate the ramifications of widely adopted Quantum AI for individuals, organisations and communities as a whole, in order to help mitigate risks and best harness its potential.

KEYWORDS:

quantum computing, artificial intelligence, large systems simulations, decision-making communication sciences, psychology, legal sciences

CONSORTIUM

  • Project Leader: Miriam Meckel, University of St. Gallen, Institute for Media and Communications Management, Switzerland, e-mail
  • Hin-Yan Liu, University of Copenhagen, Faculty of Law, Denmark, e-mail
  • Valentin Jeutner, Lund University, Faculty of Law, Sweden, e-mail
  • Surjo Soekadar, Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Clinical Neurotechnology Laboratory, Dept. of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Germany, e-mail

COOPERATION PARTERS

  • Léa Steinacker, ada Learning GmbH, e-mail
  • William Hurely, Strangeworks

EFFECTS & ACHIEVEMENTS

Project achievements:

Background and Context

Quantum computing combined with artificial intelligence promises to revolutionize how we solve complex problems, from discovering new medicines to optimizing transportation systems. Yet despite massive technological investments, we know surprisingly little about how these powerful emerging tools will affect human decision-making, trust, and autonomy. Will doctors rely too heavily on quantum-enhanced diagnostic systems? How should laws regulate technologies that operate on principles most people don’t understand? What happens when machines make probabilistic recommendations that clash with human judgment? These questions define what we call the “Q-Shift”, a fundamental transformation in how humans and machines make decisions together.

Purpose and Objectives

The Q-SHIFT project conducted one of the first comprehensive European studies of quantum technology’s social, cultural, ethical, and legal implications. Our goal was to understand how this emerging technology will reshape human experience before it becomes widely deployed. We sought to examine quantum technology through the lens of responsible innovation and its implications for European values. We also aimed to create practical tools to help society navigate this technological transition responsibly.

How We Conducted the Research

Our interdisciplinary team, spanning Switzerland, Denmark, Sweden, and Germany, combined multiple research approaches. We analyzed how media, businesses, and policymakers talk about quantum technologies to understand whose voices shape public discourse. We conducted realistic clinical simulations where people role-played receiving a cancer diagnosis with quantum AI treatment recommendations, measuring their trust and decision confidence through psychological surveys and physiological sensors. Legal scholars examined whether existing European Union laws adequately govern quantum systems. Throughout the project, we engaged with quantum scientists, doctors, patients, and industry leaders to ground our research in real-world concerns.

Key Findings and Impact

Our research revealed critical gaps: current narratives about quantum technology focus overwhelmingly on technical capabilities while largely ignoring societal and ethical implications. In healthcare settings, we found that quantum AI will likely transform how doctors and patients make treatment decisions, raising important questions about trust, transparency, and who bears responsibility when recommendations prove wrong. Drawing on comprehensive analysis of academic regulatory conversations, our legal research found that how quantum technologies are conceptualized and regulated now, in their early developmental stages, will fundamentally shape their future trajectory. This highlights the urgency of early intervention through flexible, anticipatory regulatory frameworks that emphasize openness, inclusion, and broad stakeholder participation rather than rigid top-down approaches. In addition, the project produced tangible tools for addressing these challenges. We created educational materials, including a successful online course on AI and the law that reached many learners online, as well as “Quantum Hype,” an innovative card game currently in development that makes probability and uncertainty accessible through play.

Our work has catalyzed new collaborations, including contributing to a Swedish national quantum technology excellence cluster; co-organizing a quantum-AI hackathon with industry and government partners, which will take place in Berlin in 2026; and establishing ongoing partnerships across Europe’s quantum ecosystem. By bridging the gap between technical innovation and humanistic values, Q-SHIFT provides the necessary insights to ensure that quantum technology strengthens European values.

Publications:

  • Haslacher, D., Akmazoglu, T. B., van Beinum, A., Starke, G., Buthut, M., & Soekadar, S. R. (2024), Chapter One – AI for brain-computer interfaces, In M. Ienca & G. Starke (Eds.), Developments in Neuroethics and Bioethics (Vol. 7, pp. 3-28), Academic Press, https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1016/bs.dnb.2024.02.003
  • Bublitz, C., Molnár-Gábor, F., & Soekadar, S. R. (2024). Implications of the novel EU AI Act for neurotechnologies, Neuron, 112(18), 3013-3016, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neuron.2024.08.011
  • Buthut, M., Starke, G., Akmazoglu, T. B., Colucci, A., Vermehren, M., van Beinum, A., Bublitz, C., Chandler, J., Ienca, M., & Soekadar, S. R. (2024), HYBRIDMINDS-summary and outlook of the 2023 international conference on the ethics and regulation of intelligent neuroprostheses, Frontiers in human neuroscience, 18, 1489307. https://doi.org/10.3389/fnhum.2024.1489307
  • Owolabi, M.O., Leonardi, M., Bassetti, C. et al., Global synergistic actions to improve brain health for human development, Nature Reviews Neurology 19, 371–383 (2023), https://doi.org/10.1038/s41582-023-00808-z
  • Starke, G., Akmazoglu, T.B., Colucci, A. et al. Qualitative studies involving users of clinical neurotechnology: a scoping review, BMC Med Ethics 25, 89 (2024), https://doi.org/10.1186/s12910-024-01087-z
  • Kohl S., Melies P., Uttecht J., Lührs M., Bell L., M. A. Mehler D., R. Soekadar S., Viswanathan S., Konrad K., Successful modulation of temporoparietal junction activity and stimulus-driven attention by fNIRS-based neurofeedback—A randomized controlled proof-of-concept study, Imaging Neuroscience2023, 1 1–26, doi: https://doi.org/10.1162/imag_a_00014
  • Soekadar S., Bublitz C., Chandler JA., Molnár-Gábor F., Navarro MS., Kellmeyer P., A Moratorium on Implantable Non-Medical Neurotech Until Effects on the Mind are Properly Understood, Neuroethics, Vol. 18, 2025, DOI: 10.1007/s12152-025-09612-6, https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s12152-025-09612-6
  • Soekadar S., Buthut M., Starke G., Akmazoglu T.B., Colucci A., Vermehren M., van Beinum A., Bublitz C., Chandler J.A., Ienca M., Qualitative studies involving users of clinical neurotechnology: a scoping review, BMC Med, Vol. 25, 2024, DOI: 10.1186/s12910-024-01087-z, https://bmcmedethics.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12910-024-01087-z
  • Soekadar S., Scholkmann F., Yücel M.A., Pinti P., Noah J.A., von Lühmann A., Editorial: Advances in mobile optical brain activity monitoring, Frontiers in Neuroergonomics, Vol. 6, 2025, DOI: 10.3389/fnrgo.2025.1568619, https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/neuroergonomics/articles/10.3389/fnrgo.2025.1568619/full
  • Soekadar S., Bublitz C., Molnár-Gábor F., Implications of the novel EU AI Act for neurotechnologies, Neuron, Vol. 112/18, 2025, DOI: 10.3389/fnrgo.2025.1568619, https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S089662732400607X
  • Soekadar S., Mayowa O. O., Leonardi M., Bassetti C., Jaarsma J., Hawrot T., Akintomiwa I. M., Dhamija R. K., Feng W., Straub V., Camaradou J., Dodick D. W., Sunna R., Menon B., Wright C., Lynch C., Santuccione Chadha A., Ferretti M. T., Dé A., Catsman-Berrevoets C. E., Gichu M., Tassorelli C., Oliver D., Paulus W., Mohammed R. K., Charway-Felli A., Rostasy K., Feigin V., Craven A., Cunningham E., Galvin O., Perry A. H., Fink E.L., Baneke P., Helme A., Laurson-Doube J., Medina M. T., Roa J. D., Hogl B., O’Bryan A., Trenkwalder C., Wilmshurst J., Akinyemi R. O., Yaria J. O., Good D. C., Hoemberg V., Boon P., Wiebe J., Cross H., Haas M., Jabalpurwala I., Mojasevic M., DiLuca M., Barbarino P., Clarke S., M. S. Zuberi, Olowoyo P., Owolabi A., Oyesiku N., Maly-Sundgren P. C., Norrving B., van Doorn P. A., Lewis R., Solomon T. , Servadei F., Global synergistic actions to improve brain health for human development, Nature Reviews Neurology, Vol. 19, 2025, DOI: 10.1038/s41582-023-00808-z, https://www.nature.com/articles/s41582-023-00808-z
  • Soekadar S., Buthut M., Chapter One – AI for brain-computer interfaces, Developments in Neuroethics and Bioethics, Vol. 7, 2024, DOI: 10.1016/bs.dnb.2024.02.003, https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/chapter/bookseries/abs/pii/S2589295924000031
  • Hin-Yan l., Anthropocene Liminality: Lurching towards the Synthetic Age in the Twilight of Gaia, Law, Innovation and Technology, Vol. 17 Issue 2, 2025, https://researchprofiles.ku.dk/en/publications/anthropocene-liminality-lurching-towards-the-synthetic-age-in-the/
  • Hin-Yan l., Technological Ungovernability: Foreseeability, Inexorability, Path-Dependency, Elgar Research Frontiers in Law and Technology, 2025
  • Valentin J., Lex Machina: Unlikely encounters of international law and technology, Second and Revised Edition, Media-Tryck, Lund University, 2025, DOI: doi.org/10.37852/oblu.328, ISBN: 978-91-90023-17-4, https://books.lub.lu.se/catalog/book/328
  • Valentin J., The Aesthetic Authority of Law: Experiments with Legal Form, 2025, DOI: doi.org/10.37852/oblu.327, ISBN: 978-91-988919-8-0, https://books.lub.lu.se/catalog/book/327
  • Valentin J., The Reasonable Perso: A Legal Biography, Cambridge University Press, 2025, DOI: doi.org/10.1017/9781009445672, ISBN: 1009445626 https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/reasonable-person/F03DF9AD91F1229C80D3E5E654A99441
  • Valentin J., Sovereign Human Being: Carl Schmitt, Dietrich Bonhoeffer and Responsible Decision-Making,  Bloomsburry, 2024, DOI: 10.5040/9780567717061, ISBN: 978-0-5677-1704-7, https://www.bloomsburycollections.com/monograph?docid=b-9780567717061
  • Valentin J., Public International Law and the Regulation of AI-empowered Autonomous Weapons, in: The Cambridge Handbook of Public Law and AI, Cambridge University Press, 2025
  • Valentin J., The Common Law’s Reasonable Person: A Portrait, in: The Elgar Handbook of Legal Fictions, Edward Elgar, 2025
  • Lukoseviciene A., The invisible “Gig Authorship”?, in: Plattformen – Grundlagen und Neuordnung des Rechts digitaler Plattformen, Nomos, Baden-Baden, 2024, DOI: doi.org/10.5771/9783748919919, ISBN: 978-3-7560-1454-5, https://www.nomos-elibrary.de/de/document/view/detail/uuid/4907e724-b46d-33e6-b0d0-f1bc67b00274
  • Lukoseviciene A., Regulatory Conversations in Quantum Computing: Insights into early patterns and trends in academic discourse on regulating the ‘Quantum Revolution’, Law, Innovation and Technology, 2024, DOI: 10.1080/17579961.2025.2469350, https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/citedby/10.1080/17579961.2025.2469350?scroll=top&needAccess=true
  • Lukoseviciene A., Synthetic Voices and Copyright: Originality, Expression, and AI in EU Law, Cambridge Forum on AI: Culture and Society, 2025
  • Lukoseviciene A., Regulating Quantum Futures: Normative Ecosystems and Early Intervention Opportunities in EU Law, 2025
  • Lukoseviciene A., Locating Choices: The Human–AI Dynamic in European Union Copyright Law, 2025
  • Poehlmann G., Ma Ch., Suter V., Meckel M., Setting the Quantum Agenda: How international Media shapes the Narratives of Quantum TechnologyNarratives of Quantum Technology, ICIS 2024 Proceedings, https://aisel.aisnet.org/icis2024/soc_impactIS/soc_impactIS/24/
  • Poehlmann G., Ma Ch., Suter V., Meckel M., Steinacker L., Decoding Policy Narratives: A Topic Modeling Approach to National Quantum Technology Strategies, in: Proceedings of the 58th Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences, 2025, DOI: 10.24251/HICSS.2025.235, https://scholarspace.manoa.hawaii.edu/items/19a4891e-9daf-4d18-bec8-5e201440001a
  • Suter V., Ma Ch., Poehlmann G., Meckel M., Steinacker L., An integrated view of Quantum Technology? Mapping Media, Business, and Policy Narratives, in: Proceedings of the 58th Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences, 2025, DOI: 10.24251/HICSS.2025.290, https://scholarspace.manoa.hawaii.edu/items/d6ea40c7-fd74-4055-a2fe-90408d367dfc
  • Suter V., Poehlmann G., Ma Ch., Meckel M., Quantum Technologies and Geopolitics: Comparing Parliamentary Rhetoric, EPJ Quantum Technology, 2025, DOI: 10.21203/rs.3.rs-7133985/v1, https://www.researchsquare.com/article/rs-7133985/v1
  • Suter V., Ma Ch., Poehlmann G., Meckel M., When Politicians Talk AI: Issue-Frames in Parliamentary Debates Before and After ChatGPT, Policy & Internet, vol.17, Issue 3, 2025, DOI: doi.org/10.1002/poi3.70010, https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/poi3.70010
  • Poehlmann G., Ma Ch., Suter V., Meckel M., Steinacker L., How nations narrate quantum policy: A topic modeling approach to national quantum strategies, Data & Policy, 2025
  • Suter V., Ma Ch., Poehlmann G., Meckel M., Narratives on Quantum Technologies: A Cross-Domain Analysis of Media, Business, and Policy Discourses, Data & Policy, 2025
  • Poehlmann G., Between Scylla and Charybdis: Navigating the imagined future of quantum technologies for healthcare, in: Proceedings of the 34th European Conference on Information System (ECIS), 2025
  • Meckel M., Steinacker L., Lukoseviciene A., Soekadar S., Livingston Slosser J., Poehlmann G., Hacker P., The Goldilocks Zone of Governing Technology: Leveraging Uncertainty for Responsible Quantum Practices, Quantum Economics and Finance, Vol. 2, Issue 2, 2025, DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/29767032251363962, ISBN: 2976-7032, https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/29767032251363962

 Start date

1 November 2022

Project duration

36 months

 Project budget

€ 1 423 091

Funding organisations