C12 Quantum Electronics: Strategic-Technological Analysis
C12 Quantum Electronics is a Paris-based deep-tech startup spun out of the École Normale Supérieure (ENS Paris) in 2020. It is co‑founded by twin brothers Pierre and Matthieu Desjardins, who leveraged over a decade of ENS/CNRS research on carbon nanotube spin qubits to launch a company developing novel quantum processors[1][2]. The firm’s core innovation is a qubit built from an ultrahigh‑purity carbon nanotube (isotopically pure ¹²C) suspended over a silicon chip with control electrodes and a microwave bus[3][4]. This carbon‑based architecture, pioneered by the ENS laboratory team of Dr. Takis Kontos, promises longer qubit coherence and lower error rates by minimizing nuclear‑spin noise[5][4]. C12’s founders and advisors include world‑renowned quantum electronics researchers (Takis Kontos, Matthieu Delbecq, Jérémie Viennot)[6]. The company has raised venture funding (seed and Series A totaling ~\$28M/EUR) from leading investors including Bpifrance, Airbus Ventures, the European Innovation Council Fund, and BNP Paribas[7][8]. It has also attracted public backing through regional innovation programs (e.g. PSPC “QUARBONE”) that support its industrial R&D[9][10]. C12’s mission—to build a reliable, scalable quantum computer using carbon nanotubes—addresses a gap in Europe’s strategic technology landscape. The company’s progress to a pilot production line (the “Quantum Fab” in Paris) by late 2023 demonstrates early technical viability[11][10]. C12 thus exemplifies the intersection of European academic research and emerging defense-relevant technologies. Its developments in quantum hardware could play a role in future high‑performance computing, secure communications, and advanced sensor systems that underpin European defense autonomy.