Quantum News Nexus

Quantum Computing, Inc., (QCi) appeared poised to make an acquisition after an October stock sale, and now it’s following through with the announcement that it has agreed to buy Luminar Semiconductor, Inc., (LSI) the photonic components unit of Luminar Technologies, once a much-hyped supplier of autonomous driving technology that has filed for bankruptcy.

The $110 million acquisition delivers photonic component technology, patents, and talent to QCi less than a month after it announced a new photonics-based reservoir computing system at the SC25 event. It also operates a thin-film lithium niobate foundry for photonic integrated circuits. 

While QCi has not acquired as many companies as IonQ, it is not an M&A newbie, having acquired another photonics company, QPhoton in 2022, and later AI technology firm millionways. Back in October, after it landed a $750 million private placement, QCi said the money would be used in part of strategic acquisitions, and so here we are.

The photonics aspect makes this an obvious fit in QCi, as LSI “manufactures and sells a portfolio of photonic components that are important building blocks on QCi’s technology roadmap,” according to the acquisition announcement. But, QCi also made clear that it plans to continue supporting LSI’s current customer base. Luminar in general had been working with automotive customers like Volvo on self-driving radar technology, but it was not immediately clear how much that pledge to support existing customers with stretch QCi’s one market focus.

QCi Chairman and CEO Yuping Huang, said in a statement, “This acquisition represents a meaningful step forward in our strategy to develop and scale practical, integrated quantum solutions. The post-closing revenue opportunity will be two-fold: to serve and expand LSI’s current non-quantum customer base; and to utilize LSI’s technology and products to drive the commercialization of quantum appliances in our targeted markets. LSI employees are a highly valued component of this deal and QCi will provide attractive career opportunities and competitive compensation to those that remain with the company.”

Could the “non-quantum customer base” distract QCi from its long-term quantum goals? That is fair to wonder, though if non-quantum customers can bring much-needed revenue to QCi in the shorter term, this deal could end up elevating the company as a whole and keeping its quantum goals on track and adequately funded.

“We also believe LSI’s current customer base will benefit from QCi’s ownership,” Huang added. “We are in a strong position to invest immediately in LSI’s R&D, product development, and manufacturing capabilities. We believe this combination strengthens both organizations and positions us to accelerate our technology roadmap and put quantum technology into the hands of people.”

As for Luminar, you can read more at TechCrunch and elsewhere about its bankruptcy filing and the litany of problems it has faced. The company was started by a wunderkind founder and went public after a December 2020 reverse merger with a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC), a track that several quantum technology firms are intimately familiar with. Five years later, Luminar is kaput, and now we’ll find out if QCi has managed to salvage something to elevate its own fortunes.

The acquisition needs bankruptcy court approval, but that is expected to happen by the end of January. QCi stock (NASDAQ: QUBT) was up about 18 cents to $11.09 on Tuesday morning, the day after the acquisition was announced.

Image by TravelScape in freepik.

Quantum News Nexus is a 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.