Quantum News Nexus

Don’t know where this week finds you, but hopefully somewhere warmer than Chicago, where late spring has given way to winter’s long good-bye. At least quantum headlines are blooming:

Xanadu, which should be completing its SPAC merger and going public very soon, has partnered with fellow Canadian firm TELUS. The pair plans to collaborate “on advancing sovereign quantum computing infrastructure in Canada,” according to a press release, which added that they are also intent on “exploring the development of a quantum data centre integrated with TELUS’ secure, Canadian-controlled, sovereign infrastructure.”

Such “sovereign quantum” announcements are becoming a thing around the world as individual countries are recognizing the power and potential threat inherent to quantum computing, and looking to establish some quantum independence to further their own national security and national economic goals. Worth noting: Longtime fiber network operator Telus also has invested in and partnered with Photonic, Inc., which is another Canadian photonic quantum computing company.

Speaking of Photonic, that company has a new CEO. Don Mattrick, a founding investor in the company who joined Photonic’s board just last month, is taking over as CEO, and former CEO Paul Terry is now chief product officer. “As CEO, Mattrick will focus on driving the company through its next phase—scaling commercial operations as it becomes a market leader,” a statement read. Mattrick is the former CEO of video game developer Zynga, and was president of Microsoft’s Interactive Entertainment Business, and a top executive at Electronic Arts. 

SEALSQ announced a $125 million registered direct offering under which more than 20 million ordinary shares will be sold at $4.11 per share, accompanied by warrants to purchase another 60.8 million shares at an exercise price of $5.50. The deal involves several investors, but is led by an affiliate of Heights Capital Management, and if that name sounds familiar, this announcement comes after Geneva, Switzerland-based SEALSQ announced a $200 million private placement involving Heights Capital Management last October.

Infleqtion delivered a 100-qubit quantum computing system to the UK National Quantum Computing Centre in December, according to a new company announcement. “The NQCC’s quantum computing testbed is among the first of its kind, advancing innovation at a global level,” said Matthew Kinsella, CEO of Infleqtion. “This latest achievement with Sqale reflects the progress and potential of our neutral-atom architecture and marks an important step toward larger-scale quantum systems. We’re proud to partner with the NQCC on a platform that is critical to advancing quantum computing and reinforces the UK’s leadership in this essential technology.”

Quantinuum recently announced a new R&D facility in Singapore, where it plans to deploy on of its Helios quantum computers.

PsiQuantum–yet another photonic quantum computing firm, recently announced a collaboration with the National Cancer Center Japan, under which the partners will pursue quantum algorithm and applications development.

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.