Sydney quantum computing firm nets $14m in gov't funding

The Australian government’s National Reconstruction Fund has invested A$20 million (around US$14 million) in Silicon Quantum Computing – a Sydney-based company building silicon-based quantum chips and software – to scale its quantum processing units and its Watermelon quantum machine learning system.

The investment was made as part of an ongoing funding round, and the company did not disclose details of the round.

The funding follows the company’s A$50 million (around US$34.9 million) series A in 2023, after it started with A$83 million (around US$58 million) in backing from federal and New South Wales governments plus Telstra, Commonwealth Bank, and the University of NSW.

🔗 Source: SmartCompany

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Implications, context, and why it matters.

Silicon Quantum Computing sells access to atomic-scale simulators

The funding will help expand “Quantum Twins,” an application-specific simulator for materials and molecular discovery 1.
The hardware uses 15,000 qubit registers patterned on pure silicon with 0.13 nanometer (atom-level) accuracy, so it can replicate chemical interactions under study 2.
A proprietary manufacturing process lets Silicon Quantum Computing (SQC) design, produce, and test new quantum chips in under a week 1.
Another product, “Watermelon,” is a quantum machine learning system that SQC says is already used in telecommunications and defense 1.

Australia is building a sovereign quantum industry, not just one company

The government is also investing A$20 million in Diraq, a University of New South Wales (UNSW) spinout that competes with SQC, which supports a broader national quantum ecosystem 3.
The two firms follow different chip routes; SQC relies on atomic-precision manufacturing, while Diraq uses existing industrial semiconductor foundries 3.
Local suppliers add depth, including Silex Systems, which provides isotopically enriched silicon-28 (a form of silicon used to reduce atomic “noise” that can disrupt qubits) 3.
Support for competing designs helps build a domestic supply chain for a future-facing industry.