COLD WAR II: The United States’ Quantum Talent Shortage Is a National Security Vulnerability. “Given its potential for economic growth as well as military advantage, QIST has become a central battleground of U.S.-China competition. Neither country maintains a decisive advantage across all three QIST subfields. The United States leads in the development of quantum computing and quantum sensing—but Beijing is catching up. China is ahead of the United States in the development of quantum communications technologies and holds the highest number of total quantum technology patents, indicating that it could soon erode the United States’ advantages.”