At its 33rd plenary meeting in November 2018, the Joint Technical Committee of the International Organization for Standardization and the International Electrotechnical Commission (ISO/IEC JTC 1) established Study Group 2 (SG 2) on quantum computing. The study group was tasked with improving the understanding of the state of standardization in quantum computing and exploring a possible role for JTC 1 in the field.
SG 2 grew out of earlier exploratory work within JTC 1. In March 2018, a report on advanced computing had been presented at the Joint Advisory Group meeting, and the JTC 1 Joint European and Technical Information group (JETI) subsequently began writing a Quantum Computing Technology Trend Report. The establishment of SG 2 formalized JTC 1’s engagement with quantum computing standardization, which had previously been addressed through its SC 27 Working Group 2 study period on quantum-resistant cryptography, initiated in October 2017.