WASHINGTON - The Department of Defense (DoD) is launching approximately $350 million in quantum-computing initiatives intended to identify national-security applications, validate prospective utility-scale quantum computers, and strengthen the U.S. quantum-computing industrial base.
DARPA advanced four additional quantum-computing companies to Stage C of QBI, the initiative's final evaluation phase.
Related: DARPA funds MagLev Aero propulsion demonstration for drones Quantum computing efforts The four companies join Microsoft and PsiQuantum, which previously advanced to Stage C through the Underexplored Systems for Utility-Scale Quantum Computing pilot program that preceded QBI.
The initiative is not intended to select a single winning technology, but rather to assess the technical viability of multiple approaches to utility-scale quantum computing.
The DoD also plans to identify mission-relevant quantum computing applications in chemistry, materials science, and physics.