BlackRock leads US$750m raise for PsiQuantum: Reuters
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The news: Quantum computing startup PsiQuantum is raising at least USD750 million ($1.2 billion) at a USD6 billion pre-money valuation, according to sources cited by Reuters.
The numbers: The US and Australian Governments have both invested in PsiQuantum, with the Labor-led federal and Queensland governments investing a combined $940 million in the Californian startup in 2024.
The context: Using photonics technology, the startup is aiming to use manufacturing techniques from the semiconductor industry to make quantum chips. Building large volumes of quantum computing processors is a capital intensive exercise, but has the potential to enable breakthroughs in medicine, engineering and green technology.
In September last year, PsiQuantum co-founder and chief scientific officer Pete Shadbolt said that the company will need more funding to make good on its ambition of building the world’s first commercially useful quantum computer in Brisbane by the end of 2027.
Earlier this month, Opposition Leader Peter Dutton threatened to scrap the federal government’s $470 million PsiQuantum investment, while Queensland reviews its own stake in the startup.
Big tech firms including Google, Microsoft and Amazon have all announced plans to build quantum chips as the race for quantum computing heats up. Last week Nvidia unveiled plans to establish a quantum computing research centre in Boston.
The source: Reuters
