IBM and GlobalFoundries are set to receive the largest shares of a new federal quantum investment program designed to accelerate innovation, production capacity and commercialization.
The U.S. Department of Commerce (DOC) has unveiled plans to provide more than $2 billion in federal incentives to accelerate the growth of the country’s quantum computing industry. The funding, announced through nine letters of intent under the CHIPS and Science Act, aims to strengthen domestic quantum manufacturing and maintain U.S. leadership in a technology viewed as critical to future economic and national security interests.
The largest awards will go to IBM and GlobalFoundries. IBM is set to receive $1 billion to establish a new quantum foundry subsidiary focused on producing superconducting quantum wafers. The company will match the federal investment with an additional $1 billion of its own.
GlobalFoundries will receive $375 million to create a secure domestic quantum foundry and launch a new business unit called Quantum Technology Solutions. The company said the initiative will help scale manufacturing capabilities needed for utility-scale quantum computing.
Seven other quantum technology firms are also expected to receive funding. These include Atom Computing, Diraq, D-Wave, Infleqtion, PsiQuantum, Quantinuum and Rigetti Computing.
The investments will support a range of quantum computing approaches, including neutral-atom, silicon-spin, superconducting, photonic and trapped-ion technologies. In return, the government will receive minority, non-controlling equity stakes in the participating companies.
According to the Commerce Department, quantum computing could play a major role in national defense, advanced materials development, drug discovery, energy systems and financial modeling. The initiative also reflects growing competition between the United States and China in advanced technologies.
The latest funding builds on broader federal efforts to accelerate quantum innovation. Agencies including the Department of Defense and the National Institute of Standards and Technology have launched complementary programs aimed at supporting quantum research, manufacturing and commercialization, helping establish a stronger domestic ecosystem for next-generation computing technologies.
