US's big bet on quantum computing may not be legal
Recorded: May 28, 2026, 5:03 p.m.
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US's big bet on quantum computing may not be entirely legal - Ars Technica Skip to content Ars Technica home Sections Forum Subscribe Search AI Biz & IT Cars Culture Gaming Health Policy Science Security Space Tech Feature Reviews AI Biz & IT Cars Culture Gaming Health Policy Science Security Space Tech Forum Subscribe Story text Size Small Width Standard Links Standard * Subscribers only Pin to story Theme HyperLight Day & Night Dark System Search Sign In Simultaneously legal and not legal? US’s big bet on quantum computing may not be entirely legal Deal also launched the first quantum foundry company, but is there a need for it? John Timmer May 25, 2026 8:00 am | 113 A wafer full of quantum processors fabricated by IBM. In the future, that fabrication will be done by a newly launched company.
A wafer full of quantum processors fabricated by IBM. In the future, that fabrication will be done by a newly launched company.
Text Story text Size Small Width Standard Links Standard * Subscribers only Minimize to nav Last week, the US government announced $2 billion in investments in quantum computing companies, allocating $100 million each to a range of startups in exchange for equity in the companies. Those could be make-or-break investments for many companies that are likely years away from a product that could see widespread use. But a member of the US Congress is now arguing that those deals are illegal, as Congress did not allocate the money for this purpose—instead, it was meant to support public research in semiconductors. At this point, however, it’s not obvious how to stop the deal. A lawsuit is the obvious choice, but that would require a party with standing to sue. It’s possible that a company that might otherwise have used the money for the intended research (a public-private partnership focused on electronics) could argue that it has been harmed by the diversion of the funds to a different field. But that argument would likely take so long to sort out in court that all the money would have been spent by then. For IBM, this may reflect a confidence that the company has already extracted the major benefits of rapid iteration and is safely ahead of its competition. Jay Gambetta, the leader of IBM’s quantum computing efforts, has told Ars that the current hardware error rates for its chips are where they need to be to move forward with large-scale computing. Lower errors would be better, and the company has some ideas for how to achieve them, but they’re not strictly necessary for the next few years of development. John Timmer John Timmer John is Ars Technica's science editor. He has a Bachelor of Arts in Biochemistry from Columbia University, and a Ph.D. in Molecular and Cell Biology from the University of California, Berkeley. When physically separated from his keyboard, he tends to seek out a bicycle, or a scenic location for communing with his hiking boots.
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The substantial investment by the US government in quantum computing companies, involving $2 billion allocations with equity stakes for startups, has raised legal questions regarding its legitimacy. A member of Congress argued that this allocation is illegal because the funds were intended for public research in semiconductors, as mandated by the CHIPS and Science Act, rather than directly supporting quantum technology development. The primary concern, voiced by Zoe Lofgren, is that the structure of these deals does not align with the stated goals of fostering public-private research partnerships, especially since the largest allocation benefits IBM, a company that was heavily involved in the negotiations. A significant component of this arrangement involves the creation of a quantum foundry, named Anderon, which will be endowed with a billion dollars from both government and corporate backing and will inherit intellectual property and personnel from IBM. This entity is positioned to fabricate quantum processing units and contract services to IBM and other entities seeking access to advanced hardware. While this move allows for the separation of quantum efforts, it also reflects IBM’s existing advantage derived from its in-house capabilities in materials science and fabrication, which have enabled rapid iteration and refinement of chip designs. The establishment of Anderon is intended to facilitate access to higher-quality hardware for other companies developing transmons, allowing them to iterate on designs without being limited by the availability of specialized fabrication facilities or competition with academic users. Despite the potential legal challenges, the action may ultimately benefit the broader quantum computing field by accelerating access to cutting-edge hardware and reducing the dependency on specialized fabrication facilities for various hardware approaches. However, the long-term viability of this market and the technology itself remain subjects of uncertainty. While some parties are highly invested, the ultimate goal of error-corrected quantum computing is still several years away, and there is no consensus on which technological path will achieve scalable results first. Furthermore, the market for quantum chips, particularly those based on transmons, faces potential volatility; the extreme operational requirements for these chips, such as maintaining milliKelvin temperatures and requiring a networked system of refrigerated containers, suggest a possible boom-and-bust pattern depending on market adoption for these specialized chips. |