US Plans Equity Stakes in Quantum Firms

Reports say the Trump administration is in talks to take equity stakes in leading quantum firms — including IonQ, Rigetti and D‑Wave, among others — in exchange for federal funding awards reportedly worth at least $10 million apiece, part of a broader shift toward converting grants into government ownership similar to the Intel stake. Premarket trading surged on the news, with individual quantum stocks up roughly 8–14% and the Defiance Quantum ETF rising. The program is being overseen by senior officials with industry ties, including Deputy Commerce Secretary Paul Dabbar and Deputy Secretary of Defense Steve Feinberg, prompting warnings about potential conflicts of interest. A Commerce Department official told Reuters it was "not currently negotiating with any of the companies," reflecting inconsistent or evolving accounts of the talks. Observers say the move could deepen scrutiny of the quantum sector’s role in AI and post‑quantum security and raise questions about the entanglement of policy and private financial interests.