The US government has awarded $1 billion to International Business Machines Corp. (IBM) to establish a foundry for producing quantum computing chips, as part of a $2 billion quantum computing initiative announced today. IBM will also invest an additional $1 billion into a new company named Anderon, which will focus on manufacturing these processors, according to livemint.com.
This funding is part of a broader strategy by the Trump administration to strengthen US leadership in the emerging quantum computing industry. IBM’s announcement came alongside the government’s financial support, which triggered an 11% surge in IBM’s shares in New York, marking the largest intraday gain for the company in over a year. Other quantum-focused companies such as GlobalFoundries Inc., D-Wave Quantum Inc., Rigetti Computing Inc., and Infleqtion Inc. also saw significant stock price increases following the news.
The investment underscores the growing importance of quantum computing, a nascent technology expected to unlock new capabilities across multiple sectors. The US government’s commitment reflects a competitive global landscape where countries are racing to advance quantum technologies. IBM’s move to create Anderon signals a focused effort to accelerate the production and commercialization of quantum processors, positioning the company as a key player in this high-stakes market.
Looking ahead, IBM plans to leverage the government funding and its own investment to build the foundry and scale up quantum chip production through Anderon. The development of this manufacturing capability will be a critical milestone to watch, as it could enable faster innovation cycles and broader adoption of quantum computing technologies in the near future, livemint.com reports.