Quantum News Nexus

D-Wave Quantum has become the latest quantum computing firm to augment its government sales efforts, announcing the creation of a new business unit focused on driving adoption of its technologies throughout the US government.

The unit is being led by Jack Sears Jr., who has more than 25 years of experience in government sales and strategy programs with the likes of Precise Systems and other companies. His official role will be vice president of US government solutions.

I wrote “augment” above because D-Wave is not new to the government market. Among other moves, the company has a longstanding partnership with Davidson Technologies, which has many aerospace and government customers, including the US Department of War. In fact, the creation of the new business unit comes about a month after D-Wave announced that its Advantage2 quantum computer had become operational at Davidson’s Huntsville, Alabama headquarters, where it is anticipated it will be used on mission-critical US government problems, and eventually will run sensitive applications.

The timing of D-Wave’s latest government effort aligns with a recent ramp-up of the federal government’s interest in quantum, evidenced by the announcement of the Genesis Mission, a recent US-China report and a War Dept. memo that both highlighted the critical importance of quantum, the US Department of Energy’s renewal of quantum research funding, and a report back in October suggesting the Trump administration was considering investing in quantum companies (the last of which is not aging particularly well).

D-Wave CEO Alan Baratz said in the release announcing the new unit, “The call to use quantum technologies to address our nation’s interests is increasing, as the U.S. government faces complex challenges that require more powerful and agile problem-solving resources to protect our nation. By formalizing a U.S. government-focused business unit under Jack’s leadership, we aim to facilitate the rapid development of quantum applications that address national security, defense, and infrastructure challenges.”

Image: D-Wave CEO Alan Baratz at a recent conference. (Screen capture)

Quantum News Nexus is a new site from freelance writer and editor Dan O’Shea that covers quantum computing, quantum sensing, quantum networking, quantum-safe security, and more. You can find him on X @QuantumNewsGuy and doshea14@gmail.com.