The NRFC has made a $20 million investment in Silicon Quantum Computing (SQC), which the company will use to accelerate its growth by expanding its proprietary PAQMan™ (Precision Atom Qubit Manufacturing) process – the most precise semiconductor manufacturing technology in the world.
The NRFC’s investment will create highly skilled jobs, commercialise Australian innovation, and help build sovereign quantum capability by supporting the development of next-generation atomic electronics and anchoring a globally competitive quantum industry in Australia.
About Silicon Quantum Computing
SQC is a Sydney-based global leader in the field of quantum computing. Founded in 2017 at the University of New South Wales by 2018 Australian of the Year Professor Michelle Simmons AC, SQC is the only company in the world capable of manufacturing quantum chips with atomic precision while delivering quantum enhanced-AI products for enterprises and governments.
As one of Australia’s only semiconductor manufacturing companies, SQC can design, produce, and test new quantum chips in under one week – an execution speed that sets the company apart in the global race to commercial-scale quantum computing.
The company’s products have already delivered commercial outcomes across a variety of sectors, including energy, logistics, defence, and telecommunication, with SQC customer Telstra reporting a dramatic reduction in model training time when using SQC’s Watermelon™ quantum machine learning system.
Investment impact
Building sovereign capability
SQC fabricates its semiconductors in Australia, which allows it to iterate significantly faster and with greater accuracy than its competitors. The NRFC’s investment allows SQC to expand its manufacturing processes, anchoring a globally-competitive quantum industry in Australia.
Commercialising Australian innovation
SQC’s technology is based on 25 years of research conducted at UNSW’s Centre of Excellence for Quantum Computing and Communication Technology. The NRFC’s investment is helping SQC to accelerate the development of this research as it works towards achieving its ultimate goal of developing the world’s first commercial-scale quantum computer.
Creating jobs
SQC currently employs over 100 people at its Sydney-based R&D and manufacturing lab. The NRFC’s investment is expected to create new highly skilled jobs in sales, quantum engineering, chip design, and hardware engineering, and lay the foundation for the creation of hundreds more in the future.
Transforming and diversifying Australia’s economy
The National Quantum Strategy estimates that Australia’s quantum industry could be worth $6 billion and be responsible for 19,400 jobs by 2045. The NRFC’s investment is helping to bolster Australia’s burgeoning quantum sector and further establishing the nation’s reputation as a global leader in quantum technology.