California-based quantum computing group Rigetti has announced plans to invest up to $100m (£75m) in the UK.
Rigetti Computing, worth more than $4bn, said it intends to invest the funds to accelerate quantum development in the UK in the company’s first major investment outside of its home market.
With the investment, Rigetti aims to deploy a quantum computer with over 1,000 qubits in the next four years.
“Our presence in the UK has been marked by fruitful collaboration across industry, government, and academia,” said the company’s chief executive Dr Subodh Kulkarni.
“The UK government’s unwavering dedication to advancing quantum computing technology is evident across the UK’s entire quantum ecosystem.
“We see strong alignment with the UK’s national quantum computing strategy and our own path to fault-tolerant quantum computing.”
The announcement closely follows the UK government’s announcement of a £2bn quantum procurement programme aimed at maintain and growing the country’s standing in the global quantum sector.
“Last week, we made a world-first commitment to procure usable large-scale quantum computers by the early 2030s, backed by a £2bn plan of Government funding, which is already having a positive impact on jobs and investment,” said Tech Secretary Liz Kendall.
“Rigetti shares our ambition to harness quantum to improve lives, livelihoods, and public services, and this $100m investment is a strong and immediate vote of confidence in our approach.
“The steps we are taking will deliver world-class infrastructure, access to talent, and a clear pathway which turns ideas from R&D into real-world use, building an environment which will support more companies to scale up and grow on our shores.”