Pentagon Unveils $350 Million in Quantum Computing Initiatives

Pentagon's $350 million quantum package

The Department of War announced approximately $350 million in quantum computing initiatives on Oct. 8, intended to identify national-security applications and validate prospective utility-scale quantum systems. The package, unveiled by the Office of the Under Secretary of War for Research and Engineering, includes approximately $200 million in new funding tied to the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency's Quantum Benchmarking Initiative (QBI) and an approximately $150 million conditional loan commitment from the department's Office of Strategic Capital to quantum-computing developer PsiQuantum.

Under Secretary of War for Research and Engineering Emil Michael said the effort is aimed at preserving American leadership in quantum information science. The department said it expects quantum-enabled applications in chemistry, materials science and physics to contribute to next-generation weapons, platforms and other capabilities, while the initiative builds on existing programs at the Department of Energy, the National Science Foundation and NASA.

DARPA advances four companies to QBI Stage C

DARPA announced on Oct. 7 that it had selected four companies to advance to Stage C, the final phase of its Quantum Benchmarking Initiative, with the move representing about $200 million in associated new funding. Stage C shifts the program from evaluating research and development plans to government verification and validation of the hardware and systems, with the goal of determining whether proposed utility-scale systems can be constructed as designed and operated as intended.

The four companies moving to Stage C are Atom Computing, which is developing scalable arrays of neutral atoms; Diraq, which is developing silicon CMOS spin qubits; IBM, which is developing modular superconducting quantum processors; and IonQ, which is developing trapped-ion quantum computers. They join Microsoft and PsiQuantum, which previously advanced to Stage C through the Underexplored Systems for Utility-Scale Quantum Computing pilot program that preceded QBI. Since its 2024 launch, DARPA says QBI has evaluated more than 20 companies pursuing different quantum-computing approaches.

Conditional $150 million PsiQuantum loan

The approximately $150 million conditional loan commitment to PsiQuantum comes from the Department of War's Office of Strategic Capital and is structured as a loan rather than a grant. PsiQuantum, one of the six companies now in QBI Stage C, is among the developers pursuing a utility-scale quantum computing approach being assessed by DARPA.

Planned application workshops

DARPA, working with the Department of Energy's Office of Science, the National Nuclear Security Administration and the Laboratory for Physical Sciences, will begin a series of application workshops before January 2027. The workshops are intended to bring together end users and quantum-algorithm experts to identify high-value applications, accelerate industrially relevant quantum advantage, and strengthen national defense capabilities.

Policy backdrop

The Pentagon's package builds on President Donald Trump's earlier actions on quantum information science, including executive orders issued on June 22 that set new development goals for the industry, including the development of the world's first quantum computer capable of powering advanced scientific research by 2028. The current initiative also references Executive Order 14413 and the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy report titled "Science: A New Golden Age."

Next milestone

The Pentagon's series of DARPA-led application workshops is scheduled to begin before January 2027, with Stage C verification and validation work under way at DARPA for the six companies now in the final phase of the Quantum Benchmarking Initiative.