US pursues utility-scale quantum computers with new $125M DARPA validation deal

Quantum computing company PsiQuantum has secured a $125 million expanded agreement with the US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) to test and evaluate its plans for building utility-scale quantum computers. The performance-based agreement is the company’s largest government award to date and expands work under DARPA’s Quantum Benchmarking Initiative (QBI), a program designed to assess whether commercial quantum computing approaches can eventually deliver large-scale, fault-tolerant systems. PsiQuantum is one of two companies that have reached Stage C, the final and most advanced phase of QBI. The latest agreement will support evaluations of the company’s hardware designs, key components, system-level performance and software. The funding will also help PsiQuantum invest in infrastructure at facilities in Milpitas, California, and Chicago, Illinois, as the company works toward building and deploying utility-scale quantum computers. DARPA puts quantum plans The new agreement expands an evaluation process that has involved extensive technical scrutiny. DARPA experts have reviewed PsiQuantum’s designs, examined prototype reports, conducted on-site testing, and watched demonstrations of key components and fabrication processes. The agency has also evaluated resource estimates for running complex quantum algorithms and gained access to Construct, PsiQuantum’s platform for developing fault-tolerant algorithms. ” DARPA’s widely respected team of experts has stress-tested PsiQuantum’s approach, provided an independent and clear-eyed assessment and validation of our designs and our teams, and ultimately made our company and technology all the better for it.” The agreement builds on PsiQuantum’s earlier work with DARPA. The agency selected the company in January 2023 for the initial stage of the Underexplored Systems for Utility-Scale Quantum Computing program, which preceded QBI. PsiQuantum entered the program’s second stage in 2024 and advanced to Stage C in February 2025. In September 2025, the company announced a $31.8 million agreement for continued on-site testing and evaluation under Stage C. The expanded $125 million tasking will broaden the validation effort across hardware and architecture, software and applications, and the infrastructure needed to support large-scale quantum systems. Photons target useful quantum PsiQuantum’s approach uses photonic quantum computing, which relies on particles of light called photons to process quantum information. The company says this approach can take advantage of high-volume semiconductor manufacturing, existing cryogenic infrastructure and flexible system architecture to scale quantum computers. “Since our first engagement with DARPA several years ago, we have been delighted to give their team unparalleled access to our most sensitive designs, performance data, and plans,” said Dr. Pete Shadbolt, Co-Founder and Chief Scientific Officer of PsiQuantum. “The QBI program has been admirably skeptical by design. Expert scrutiny from DARPA has put us to the test and significantly strengthened our plans. We are very grateful for the ongoing partnership.” The latest agreement comes as PsiQuantum expands its work with the US government. In May 2026, the company announced a Letter of Intent with the US Department of Commerce for $100 million in proposed federal incentives under the CHIPS and Science Act. PsiQuantum has also developed partnerships with the US Air Force Research Laboratory and several national laboratories as it works toward its goal of building what it calls the world’s first useful quantum computers. The company was founded in 2016 and is headquartered in Palo Alto, California. Recommended ArticlesGet the latest in engineering, tech, space & science - delivered daily to your inbox.With over a decade-long career in journalism, Neetika Walter has worked with The Economic Times, ANI, and Hindustan Times, covering politics, business, technology, and the clean energy sector. Passionate about contemporary culture, books, poetry, and storytelling, she brings depth and insight to her writing. When she isn’t chasing stories, she’s likely lost in a book or enjoying the company of her dogs.