Technology

US Government Invests $2 Billion in Quantum Computing: IBM, D-Wave, Rigetti Stocks Surge

on May 22, 2026

Table of Contents Expand

US Government Bets $2 Billion on Quantum Computing
IBM Leads with $1 Billion, New Quantum Chip Factory
Full List: 9 Companies Receive Funding
Market Reaction: Quantum Stocks Surge
Why Now? CHIPS Act and Strategic Equity
Key Takeaways

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US Government Bets $2 Billion on Quantum Computing

On May 21, 2026, the U.S. Department of Commerce announced a sweeping $2.013 billion investment in nine quantum computing companies. The funding, drawn from the CHIPS and Science Act, aims to accelerate domestic quantum manufacturing and secure American leadership in the emerging technology [citation:1][citation:9].

The announcement triggered an immediate rally in quantum computing stocks, with several companies posting gains of over 30% [citation:2][citation:6].

Quick Take: IBM receives the largest share at $1 billion. The government will take minority equity stakes in all nine companies — a new model for federal tech investment.

IBM Leads with $1 Billion, New Quantum Chip Factory

IBM emerged as the single biggest beneficiary, securing $1 billion in federal funding. The company will invest an additional $1 billion to launch a new subsidiary called Anderon — America's first dedicated quantum chip manufacturing facility, based in New Albany, New York [citation:2][citation:8].

The facility will produce quantum-grade superconducting wafers and will also offer its chipmaking technology to external customers. IBM CEO Arvind Krishna told Reuters that Anderon is already in talks with potential clients: "They're going to get the exact same capability that we have for ourselves" [citation:8].

IBM's Commitment

IBM will contribute $1 billion in cash, plus intellectual property, assets, and workforce to Anderon. The company plans to bring in additional investors as the new venture grows.

Full List: 9 Companies Receive Funding

The Department of Commerce took a portfolio approach, spanning multiple quantum computing modalities including superconducting, trapped ion, photonic, neutral atom, and silicon spin [citation:9].

Company	Funding	Focus Area
IBM	$1 billion	Superconducting quantum wafer foundry
GlobalFoundries	$375 million	Multi-modality quantum foundry
D-Wave Quantum	$100 million	Annealing and gate-model superconducting systems
Rigetti Computing	$100 million	Next-gen superconducting quantum computing
Infleqtion	$100 million	Neutral-atom quantum computers and error correction
PsiQuantum	$100 million	Photonic quantum computing, low-loss packaging
Quantinuum	$100 million	Trapped-ion fault-tolerant quantum computing
Atom Computing	$100 million	Neutral-atom hardware and systems integration
Diraq	Up to $38 million	Silicon spin quantum logic units

[Note] GlobalFoundries has launched a new business called Quantum Technology Solutions focused on scaling manufacturing for quantum-computing hardware. The U.S. government will take an equity stake of about 1% in GlobalFoundries [citation:8].

Market Reaction: Quantum Stocks Surge

Investors responded enthusiastically. The funding news sent quantum computing stocks soaring across the board [citation:2][citation:6]:

Company	Stock Movement
IBM	+12.43% (largest gain since January 2025)
GlobalFoundries	+14%
D-Wave Quantum	+29% to +33%
Rigetti Computing	+28% to +30%
Infleqtion	+31% to +44%
IonQ	+12%

[Comparison] When the U.S. government previously invested $8.9 billion in Intel, the stock surged 480% within a year [citation:6]. Investors are betting on a similar trajectory for quantum stocks.

Why Now? CHIPS Act and Strategic Equity

The funding comes from the CHIPS and Science Act's research and development专项资金, which has already allocated $11 billion for semiconductor R&D. The Biden-era law, totaling $52 billion, is now being reshaped by the Trump administration to focus on equity-backed investments [citation:2][citation:10].

A New Model: Equity Stakes for Taxpayers

Unlike traditional grants, the U.S. government will receive a minority, non-controlling equity stake in each recipient company. This "subsidy plus equity" model aims to give taxpayers a share of the upside. The same approach was used last year when the government took a 10% stake in Intel [citation:1][citation:8].

Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick framed the investment as a national security imperative: "With today's CHIPS Research and Development investments in quantum computing, the Trump administration is leading the world into a new era of American innovation."

The move is widely seen as a direct response to China's rapid advances in quantum technology. Quantum computing has profound implications for encryption, drug discovery, financial modeling, and national defense [citation:2].

Key Takeaways

$2.013 billion in federal incentives for 9 quantum computing companies under the CHIPS and Science Act [citation:9]
IBM receives the largest share ($1 billion) to launch Anderon, America's first dedicated quantum chip factory [citation:2][citation:8]
GlobalFoundries gets $375 million to build a multi-modality quantum foundry [citation:1]
Seven pure-play quantum companies receive $100 million each, spanning superconducting, photonic, trapped ion, and neutral atom technologies [citation:4][citation:9]
Quantum stocks surge — D-Wave +33%, Rigetti +30%, Infleqtion +44%, IBM +12% [citation:2][citation:6]
New funding model — Government takes minority equity stakes in exchange for grants, with an eye on taxpayer returns [citation:1][citation:8]
Strategic competition with China is a primary driver [citation:2]