U.S. Lawmakers Reportedly Pushing Higher Defense Spending on Quantum as China Race Intensifies

Insider BriefU.S. lawmakers are moving to sharply increase military spending on quantum technology as Washington seeks to keep pace with China and turn years of scientific research into defense, intelligence and cybersecurity capabilities.The House is expected later this year to consider defense funding legislation that would raise annual military spending on quantum development and applications by 68% to $567 million, Bloomberg reported. A similar funding effort is underway in the Senate, adding to a broader federal push to accelerate quantum technologies from laboratories toward practical use.The congressional efforts come as the Trump administration increases its focus on quantum technology as an economic and national security priority. In May, the administration announced plans for more than $2 billion in direct federal investments in the industry.President Donald Trump followed in June with executive orders aimed at advancing quantum research and development and accelerating federal preparations for cybersecurity threats posed by future quantum computers.The combined moves suggest that Washington increasingly views quantum technology as part of the competition over strategically important technologies, even as commercial quantum computers remain at an early stage of development.Quantum computers use the properties of quantum mechanics to process information differently from conventional computers. Researchers expect sufficiently powerful machines could eventually tackle certain calculations that are impractical for today’s computers, with potential applications in areas including chemistry, materials science, finance and logistics.The technology also carries national security implications. A sufficiently capable quantum computer could potentially defeat some of the public-key encryption methods now used to protect government communications, financial transactions and other sensitive information.That threat has prompted governments to begin moving toward post-quantum cryptography, or encryption methods designed to withstand attacks from both conventional and quantum computers.Quantum technologies extend beyond computing and cybersecurity. Governments and defense agencies are also exploring quantum sensors that could improve navigation, timing and detection, as well as quantum communication technologies designed for highly secure networks.The growing federal commitment comes despite continued uncertainty about when quantum computing will produce significant commercial returns. Philip Singerman, senior adviser at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, told Bloomberg that investors remain skeptical about the industry’s near-term commercial prospects despite recent technical advances.Shares of several publicly traded quantum companies, including D-Wave Quantum Inc., Infleqtion Inc. and Rigetti Computing Inc., have fallen sharply since the beginning of the year, Bloomberg reported. That performance contrasts with continued gains among many artificial intelligence and semiconductor companies.IonQ Inc. has fared differently in recent weeks.

The College Park, Md.-based company last week completed its $1.8 billion acquisition of semiconductor foundry SkyWater Technology Inc. after federal regulators ended their review without taking action to block the transaction. IonQ also raised its full-year revenue forecast Wednesday, helping its shares recover most of their losses for the year.The international competition is adding urgency to the federal push, according to Bloomberg.China has established a $10 billion National Laboratory for Quantum Information Sciences, while Europe and the U.K. together have committed nearly three times as much public funding as the U.S. toward developing quantum technology, Bloomberg reported.Darío Gil, under secretary for science at the Department of Energy, told Bloomberg that China’s large-scale effort to establish leadership in quantum technology is a central concern for U.S. policymakers.The competition is increasingly about more than demonstrating experimental quantum systems. Governments are seeking domestic supply chains, trained workers, manufacturing capacity and companies capable of turning scientific advances into deployable systems.Large technology companies including Microsoft Corp. and Alphabet Inc.’s Google are pursuing quantum computers alongside specialized companies such as IonQ, Quantinuum, PsiQuantum and D-Wave.The industry’s growing importance has also increased its presence in Washington.Infleqtion Chief Executive Matt Kinsella told Bloomberg that quantum executives have found it substantially easier to secure meetings with lawmakers than they did two years ago. Companies and industry representatives are increasingly engaging policymakers as Congress and federal agencies determine how to fund and regulate the emerging sector.“When we first started doing this two years ago, we struggled to get meetings with staffers on the Hill,” Kinsella said in an interview, Bloomberg reported. “Now, we’re meeting directly with senators and representatives.”The White House hosted a quantum technology summit in July that focused on strengthening domestic supply chains, developing the workforce and gathering input from industry. Officials from the White House, National Science Foundation and the departments of Defense, Energy and Commerce participated alongside executives from companies including IBM, PsiQuantum and Infleqtion.Lobbying spending is rising alongside federal support. Infleqtion, D-Wave, PsiQuantum and Quantinuum, four quantum companies slated to receive Commerce Department grants, have doubled their combined annual lobbying expenditures to $2.2 million, Bloomberg reported, citing disclosure records.Some of those federal relationships are attracting scrutiny. PsiQuantum, which is expected to receive $100 million from the Commerce Department, raised $1 billion last year from investors that included 1789 Capital, where Donald Trump Jr. is a partner. D-Wave, which was allocated the same amount by Commerce, went public in 2022 under Emil Michael, who is now a senior Pentagon official, according to Bloomberg.The White House did not respond to Bloomberg’s request for comment.TopicsShare Get the latest research, company news, and market intelligence every week. MENTIONED IN THE ARTICLEMore in Research