PsiQuantum’s $1B Series E, Nvidia, & the Race to 1 Million Qubits
Timestamps are as accurate as they can be but may be slightly off. We encourage you to listen to the full context.
Podcast Summary
This episode features Pete Shadbolt, co-founder and CEO of PsiQuantum, discussing the company's groundbreaking approach to quantum computing and their recent billion-dollar funding round. (00:25) Shadbolt explains how PsiQuantum is taking a radically different approach by going straight to building a million-qubit quantum computer rather than incrementally scaling smaller systems. (06:37) The conversation covers their unique manufacturing partnerships with Global Foundries, strategic sites in Australia and Chicago, and the company's vision for quantum computing as a transformative technology for chemistry, materials science, and drug discovery.
- Main themes include quantum computing's commercial timeline, the intersection of advanced manufacturing and frontier technology, and PsiQuantum's strategy of leveraging existing semiconductor infrastructure to achieve massive scale
Speakers
Pete Shadbolt
Co-founder and CEO of PsiQuantum, Pete Shadbolt moved from the UK to Silicon Valley a decade ago to pursue quantum computing. He previously conducted foundational research in optical quantum computing at the University of Bristol and Imperial College London. Under his leadership, PsiQuantum has raised nearly $2 billion in private capital and secured major government partnerships, including a billion-dollar deal with the Australian government and anchor tenancy at a $500 million quantum computing campus in Chicago.
Molly Mielke
Host of the Sorcery podcast, focusing on deep tech, frontier technologies, and the companies pushing the boundaries of what's possible in advanced manufacturing, space, and quantum computing.
Key Takeaways
Go Big or Go Home: The Million-Qubit Strategy
PsiQuantum rejected the incremental approach taken by most quantum companies, instead committing entirely to building a million-qubit system from day one. (05:52) While Google has demonstrated impressive 100-qubit systems, Shadbolt explains that the general consensus requires about one million qubits for commercially impactful applications. Rather than building 20-qubit, then 50-qubit systems incrementally over decades, PsiQuantum invested all resources into the manufacturing processes, networking, and cooling technologies needed for the ultimate large-scale machine. This approach mirrors how leadership-class supercomputers are built - by establishing manufacturing processes first, then scaling up infrastructure rather than incrementally adding components.
Leverage Existing Infrastructure for Revolutionary Technology
The key insight enabling PsiQuantum's ambitious timeline is fitting quantum computing into existing semiconductor industry infrastructure. (14:52) Shadbolt argues that the only reason they could make the "extreme bet" of going straight to a million qubits is because their technology fits into existing fabs, contract manufacturers, and supply chains that already produce millions of devices annually. This gives them the same scaling leverage that allowed Elon Musk's team to build a 100,000 GPU cluster in 112 days - by tapping into mature manufacturing ecosystems rather than building everything from scratch.
Power is Captured on the Frontier
The most consequential companies of our age - TSMC, ASML, SpaceX, NVIDIA, OpenAI - are all living or dying based on the quality of their science and their position on the bleeding edge. (21:34) These companies deal with boiling sulfuric acid, bleeding-edge rocket engines, nanometer-scale fabrication, and 100 gigahertz networking. They're valuable almost by definition because they do something so technically difficult that nobody else can do it. There's basically only one TSMC, one ASML, one SpaceX - and PsiQuantum aims to earn their place in this exclusive list of frontier technology companies.
Build Where the Expertise and Infrastructure Align
PsiQuantum's strategic site selection demonstrates how to match technical requirements with existing capabilities and bold execution mindsets. (60:17) The Australian site leverages decades of foundational optical quantum computing research done there, while the Chicago location taps into the region's strong concentration of quantum computing expertise from national labs and universities. The Chicago site, built on a former US Steel foundry that once produced a million tons of steel annually, already has the power and water infrastructure needed. Shadbolt notes they need to be surrounded by people with the mentality of those who "reversed the flow of the river" and "lifted entire city blocks."
Zero-to-One Technologies Require Different Business Models
Unlike SaaS companies that can generate early revenue incrementally, quantum computing is a "zero-to-one" technology similar to self-driving cars. (50:47) Shadbolt explains that trying to generate revenue with current quantum systems is like charging people to use a two-qubit chip that can be simulated by a pocket calculator - it creates false impressions of progress. The appropriate approach is to face the "unpleasant reality" that this is binary technology: either you cross the threshold to usefulness (like Waymo's fleet suddenly working) or you don't. This requires massive upfront capital investment before any revenue, but then potentially rapid transition to enormous value creation.
Quantum Computing as a Bridge to Continued Innovation
Conventional computing is approaching fundamental limits that threaten continued technological progress. (29:40) A single million-qubit quantum computer would outperform the net total of all conventional computing on the planet for specific chemistry and materials problems. This represents a bridge beyond the cliff humanity risks hitting as we run out of power, space, and even training data for AI systems. Rather than building ever-larger conventional supercomputers, quantum computing offers access to "virgin territory that will otherwise remain forever unexplored" - the microscopic foundations of chemistry and physics that underpin our entire economy.
Statistics & Facts
- PsiQuantum has raised nearly $2 billion in private capital, more than any other quantum computing company. (05:25) This includes their recent funding round with investors like BlackRock, Baillie Gifford, and Temasek, bringing their total private funding close to $2 billion.
- 80% of PsiQuantum's supply chain is based in the United States, involving hundreds of companies in their manufacturing ecosystem. (78:27) This demonstrates significant domestic manufacturing capability and job creation potential in the quantum sector.
- PsiQuantum has spent over $100 million across eight years establishing their manufacturing process at Global Foundries in upstate New York, with 10 people and 10 shipping container-sized semiconductor manufacturing tools. (63:49) This investment represents their commitment to tier-one semiconductor manufacturing for quantum applications.
