Each of three quantum computing firms has secured a deal with the U.S. Department of Commerce worth $100 million under the CHIPS and Science Act funding program.
On Tuesday, D-Wave Quantum, Rigetti Computing, and Quantinuum each entered into definitive agreements. In exchange for the grants, the federal government will acquire a minority, non-controlling equity stake in each company. The combined value of the three arrangements comes to $300 million, and they are being handled as research-and-development grants under the CHIPS Act.
Tuesday’s premarket trading saw gains across all three companies, with each posting a rise in its share price. Rigetti stock moved up 7.4% to $16.33, D-Wave stock rose 5.4% to $17.48, and Quantinuum stock climbed 3.9% to $51.56.
All three recipients must meet the equity stake requirement, and the money set aside is meant for research and development work.
What Each Company Will Build
The company has announced plans to build a new annealing machine with 100,000 qubits alongside a gate-model system featuring 10,000 qubits. The gate-model system is expected to support 100 logical qubits capable of executing more than one million operations.
D-Wave’s two planned systems differ in size and design. The annealing system carries a greater number of qubits, at 100,000, than the gate-model system. That second system has fewer qubits overall, though it is built to handle logical qubits capable of running complex operations.
Rigetti is pursuing three R&D projects, each with its own focus. One project aims to compress readout electronics into a single, compact package. Another seeks to expand cryogenic capacity by adopting a new cryostat architecture. The third is devoted to developing fabrication capabilities for chip architectures with high connectivity.
Quantinuum has stated that the funding will be used to back both research and development and domestic production of quantum semiconductors. In its partnership with chipmaker GlobalFoundries, the company will develop 300mm wafer fabrication for next-generation ion traps. It is also working with Monarch Quantum on the lasers and optical components that power its trapped-ion systems.
Quantinuum’s Trapped-Ion Position
The firm said it stands alone among companies built around trapped ions when it comes to CHIPS R&D support.
“This award is a validation of Quantinuum’s leadership in trapped-ion quantum computing,” said Dr. Rajeeb Hazra, President and CEO of Quantinuum, in a statement. “Together with our domestic partners, we are building the technology and supply-chain foundation needed to scale fault-tolerant systems and strengthen America’s leadership in this strategically important field.”
The three companies take different technical approaches, according to their announced plans. D-Wave’s award will fund an annealing system, while Quantinuum’s funding supports trapped-ion technology.
| Company | Award Amount | Focus Area |
|---|---|---|
| D-Wave | $100 million | 100,000-qubit annealing system; 10,000-qubit gate-model system |
| Rigetti | $100 million | Readout electronics, cryogenic capacity, chip fabrication |
| Quantinuum | $100 million | Trapped-ion systems with GlobalFoundries and Monarch Quantum |
The Broader Federal Package
The three deals are part of a larger federal effort to award $2 billion across nine quantum computing companies under the CHIPS and Science Act. The U.S. will take equity stakes in each recipient.
That broader package allocates $1 billion for IBM, funding a quantum chip foundry to be built in Albany, New York.
Each of the three companies will be subject to a minority, non-controlling stake held by the federal government as part of the funding arrangement. The CHIPS Act serves as the legal foundation for these research-and-development grants.
Tuesday marked the finalization of the funding choices. The scope of the federal pledge stands at $2 billion spread among nine firms, with the government taking equity in each. It remains uncertain whether the grants will hasten the route to fault-tolerant quantum computing, yet the federal government has put considerable resources behind the sector.
Source: finance.yahoo.com
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