U.S. Will Invest $2 Billion In Quantum Computing Firms And Take Equity, Report Says
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BreakingBusinessBreaking NewsU.S. Will Invest $2 Billion In Quantum Computing Firms And Take Equity, Report SaysByZachary Folk,Forbes Staff. I cover breaking news.Follow AuthorMay 21, 2026, 09:03am EDTMay 21, 2026, 10:28am EDTToplineThe U.S. will invest $2 billion in grant funding in return for equity stakes in nine quantum computing companies, the Wall Street Journal first reported citing the Commerce Department, including a $1 billion grant for IBM as the Trump administration’s push to take equity stakes in tech and industrial manufacturers continues.The grants include a massive $1 billion grant for IBM.UCG/Universal Images Group via Getty ImagesKey FactsLegacy tech firm IBM is expected to receive the largest grant, worth about $1 billion, which it will use alongside $1 billion of its own funds to build a quantum chip foundry to build the specialized semiconductors necessary to power quantum computers in the U.S., the company announced in a separate press release on Thursday.Another chipmaker GlobalFoundries, is expected to get $375 million, the company said in its own press release, and said it would be used to scale its own quantum computing hardware manufacturing.At least three more quantum firms are expecting $100 million each: D-Wave Quantum, Rigetti Computing and Infleqtion, according to the Journal’s report.Diraq, a startup, is also expected to get a smaller $38 million grant, the company confirmed on Thursday.The deals have not been finalized, the Journal reported, and the Commerce Department did not immediately return a request for comment from Forbes.How Big Are The Equity Stakes?The money for the $2 billion in grant funding is coming from the CHIPS and Science Act, the bill signed by former President Joe Biden in 2022 intended to subsidize semiconductor manufacturing in the United States. At this point, it is unclear how the equity stakes are structured for most of these deals. D-Wave told the Wall Street Journal the entire $100 billion would be treated as an equity investment, and Rigetti and Infleqtion said they were making similar deals. In their press release, GlobalFoundries said the government’s equity stake was a “separate agreement” and would equate to “approximately one percent ownership as of today’s date.”How Have Markets Reacted?Share prices for IBM soared after markets opened on Thursday, with the stock price rising over 4.6% after 10 a.m. EDT. GlobalFoundries’ share price also soared, rising about 12% after markets opened. The smaller companies posted even bigger jumps—D-Wave Quantum rose 27% and Rigetti was up 28%, while Infleqtion surged a staggering 42%.Key BackgroundSince Trump returned to office in 2025, the federal government has made the unusual step to take equity stakes in critical tech and industrial firms. In July, the Pentagon announced it would become the largest shareholder in MP Materials, a rare earths mining company to counter China’s dominance in the industry. Later in 2025, the government expanded this strategy into tech firms, taking a 10% equity stake in Intel and turning the federal government into the chipmaker’s third-largest shareholder.Further ReadingForbesTrump Says Intel Will Give 10% Stake To U.S., Becoming Third-Largest ShareholderBy Ty RoushGot a tip? Share confidential information with Forbes.Editorial StandardsReprints & PermissionsLOADING VIDEO PLAYER...FORBES’ FEATURED Video