PsiQuantum aims to build a utility-scale fault-tolerant quantum computer capable of error correction in Brisbane, Australia.

The Temasek-backed quantum computing startup PsiQuantum announced it has secured US$620 million in funding from the Australian Commonwealth and Queensland governments, to build a commercial quantum computer by 2077.

Partnership with the Australian and Queensland governments is a massive step forward for quantum computing opportunities. The computer-to-build will be located at a strategic site near Brisbane Airport in Brisbane, Australia.

The ambitious project is the first of its kind. The designed fault-tolerant quantum computer is expected to solve commercially useful problems with error correction across different industries built upon chemistry, math, and physics expertise. This list includes critical industries like renewable energy, minerals and metals, healthcare and transportation.

According to PsiQuantum Chief Business Officer Stratton Sclavos, the startup’s applications teams have already been working with leading companies in pharmaceuticals, semiconductor manufacturing, aerospace, chemicals, and financial services to ensure that fault-tolerant quantum applications are ready to deploy once the system is operational.

Quantum computing uses principles of quantum physics to perform calculations that are not feasible for digital computers. They need cooling on an industrial level. PsiQuantum uses individual particles of light – photons – to process quantum data. This approach is expected to make the computer less prone to errors.

To deliver on the promise, PsiQuantum earlier installed its cryogenic quantum modules into the SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory cryoplant facility, which is capable of kilowatts of cooling power. It was used to validate intermediate-scale systems. That enabled the startup to scale its fusion-based architecture using a photonics- approach, that is encoding qubits into particles of light.

The firm sees a utility-scale quantum computer as an opportunity “to construct a new, practical foundation of computational infrastructure and in so doing ignite the next industrial revolution,” said Prof. Jeremy O’Brien, PsiQuantum CEO.