Quantum Computing Inc. (QCI) announced plans to construct and operate a state-of-the-art quantum nanophotonics technology manufacturing and research center to expand its current chip development capabilities. The company is negotiating several offers of federal, state, and regional funding incentives to help finance the project and advance quantum innovation.
The initiative is expected to benefit from the recently passed federal CHIPS and Science Act of 2022 which allocates $52 billion for the revitalization and onshoring of semiconductor manufacturing in the US The funding includes $39 billion in manufacturing incentives and $13 billion to support research and development.
These federal funds are expected to be released to state and local governments in the first quarter of 2023. QCI is working closely using its existing relationships with government officials, economic development groups, and business communities to marshal the required resources for the endeavor.
“The passage of the CHIPS Act is a historic opportunity to transform the US semiconductor industry,” stated QCI CEO Robert Liscouski. “We are positioned to play a significant role in this effort by applying our engineering expertise and quantum technology to develop the next generation of quantum computing technology, including nanophotonics chips. While there is no absolute certainty for success in getting funding, we are heavily engaged with a number of states that are seizing this initiative to establish leadership in the manufacturing of this critical technology. They recognize that our technology is vital to our technological base but also to the development of a well-educated and trained workforce that will enable the US to remain a leader in technological innovation.”
Optical chips are expected to ultimately provide the greatest scalability and performance advantages for quantum information processing, networking, sensing, and imaging.
For the planned facility, QCI expects to raise $30 million from CHIPS funding, as well as through state and regional incentives. The research center would complement the research and development activities already underway at QCI’s facilities in New Jersey, as well as further scale and broaden the scope of quantum research efforts.
“The next stage in the process is to carefully evaluate and select the best options for QCI,” noted Liscouski. “This includes a thorough review and analysis of the business climate, tax rates, economic growth potential, and workforce quality among the host of considerations.”
While commercial quantum computing is still relatively nascent, QCI has emerged on the forefront of a technological revolution that uses its technology to solve complex constraint optimization problems facing businesses and governments today.
QCI’s Entropy Quantum Computer (EQC), the Dirac 1, is solving real world business problems using game-changing quantum computational capability that surpasses anything currently available on the market. The system is available through an on-line subscription service offered directly by QCI.
This advanced proprietary technology supports full stack quantum solutions that enables customers to run complex optimization problems on a stable, room temperature, desktop platform. As part of QCI’s strategic vision and roadmap, the current system’s platform technology will migrate from a discrete component architecture to a highly integrated system on a chip design that will further extend the core technology in scalability, stability, performance, and cost. This approach will extend the core technologies capabilities in developing solutions for multi-body interaction optimization problems, photonic gate-model circuits, quantum cybersecurity and encryption methods, and ultrasensitive sensing and imaging systems; all leveraging the power of photonic quantum engineering.
“We believe the development of a commercially scalable quantum computing chip represents a massive opportunity, and one that QCI is ready to tackle,” added Liscouski. “The launch of this new manufacturing and research project presents a bold first step toward achieving our vision of a new quantum future.”