D-Wave, Rigetti, and IBM Shares Surge as U.S. Backs Quantum Computing with $2 Billion in Grants

TLDR

• The Trump administration is giving $2 billion in grants to nine quantum computing companies
• IBM gets the largest share at $1 billion and is matching it with $1 billion of its own money
• GlobalFoundries receives $375 million; D-Wave, Rigetti, and Infleqtion get around $100 million each
• The U.S. government will take minority equity stakes in each company as part of the deals
• Shares of the companies involved surged between 7% and 21% in premarket trading

The Trump administration announced $2 billion in grants to nine quantum computing companies on Thursday. The deals, confirmed by the Commerce Department, also include the U.S. government taking equity stakes in each company.

IBM is the biggest winner, receiving $1 billion from the government. The company says it will match that with $1 billion of its own money to build what it calls the nation’s first specialized quantum chip manufacturing facility.

Chip maker GlobalFoundries will receive $375 million. Smaller publicly traded companies D-Wave Quantum, Rigetti Computing, and Infleqtion are each expected to receive around $100 million. Startup Diraq may receive $38 million.

Other quantum startups slated for funding include Atom Computing, PsiQuantum, and Quantinuum.

Stock Prices React

Shares in the publicly traded companies rose sharply on the news. IBM and GlobalFoundries each gained around 7% in premarket trading. D-Wave, Rigetti, and Infleqtion surged roughly 15% or more.

International Business Machines Corporation, IBM

D-Wave confirmed that all of its $100 million award will come as an equity investment. The company recently had a market value of more than $7 billion. Rigetti and Infleqtion said their deals would follow a similar structure.

The funding comes from the 2022 Chips and Science Act, which set aside money for early-stage technology projects.

Government Equity Stakes

This is not the first time the Trump administration has taken equity in a company it sees as strategically important. It has already taken a nearly 10% stake in Intel and invested in rare earth firms MP Materials and Vulcan Elements.

Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said the deals are structured so taxpayers will ultimately benefit. A senior Commerce Department official acknowledged the investments could take years to pay off, and said the government spread money across multiple companies to reduce risk.

The administration is also working on an executive order focused on the quantum industry, according to people familiar with the matter.

What Is Quantum Computing?

Quantum computers use the laws of quantum mechanics to process information much faster than traditional computers for certain complex problems. Right now, though, most quantum computers spend so much power fixing errors that they are not yet faster than regular computers on a net basis.

Companies including Microsoft and Google’s parent Alphabet are also investing heavily in quantum computing following recent breakthroughs in the field.

The deals still need to be completed before any money changes hands.

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