The U.S. Department of Energy has renewed funding for the Quantum Science Center through 2030, committing a planned total of $125 million over five years to advance fault-tolerant, quantum-accelerated high-performance computing. The center, headquartered at Oak Ridge National Laboratory, will continue to lead a consortium of national laboratories, universities, and industry partners in accelerating the development of quantum technologies that work in conjunction with leadership-class computing systems.
The initiative will focus on integrating quantum processors with large-scale computing architectures to support the next generation of scientific discovery. Planned work includes the development of hybrid quantum and classical computing software frameworks, the design of co-engineered computing systems, new quantum algorithms and scientific applications, and experimental validation of quantum simulations against real-world measurements.
The center will organize its research efforts across five coordinated areas. These include the development of the openQSE end-to-end software ecosystem led by ORNL’s Vicente Leyton, hybrid algorithms research led by Los Alamos National Laboratory’s Yigit Subasi, hybrid system co-design directed by ORNL’s Chris Zimmer, scientific application development guided by LANL’s Andrew Sornberger, and experimental materials validation led by ORNL’s Michael McGuire.
Partner organizations contributing to the program include Atom Computing, Caltech, Cornell University, IBM, Infleqtion, IonQ, IQM, Los Alamos National Laboratory, North Carolina State University, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Purdue University, Quantinuum, QuEra, Riverlane Research, Unitary Foundation, University of California, Berkeley, University of California, Davis, University of California, San Diego, and the University of Tennessee Knoxville.
The Quantum Science Center was initially established in 2020 as part of the National Quantum Initiative Act and is one of five national research centers dedicated to advancing quantum information science. Since its inception, the center has made significant progress in hybrid quantum and classical computing methods, large-scale quantum simulations, and the development of novel quantum hardware platforms.
The renewed funding is intended to strengthen U.S. scientific leadership and create a new ecosystem for quantum-accelerated computing capable of addressing large and complex scientific challenges. By combining academic research, government facilities, and private-sector innovation, the center aims to advance quantum computing from experimental systems toward practical use in science and national competitiveness.
KEY QUOTES
“Since 2020, the Quantum Science Center has been at the forefront of U.S. quantum research, laying the groundwork for future technologies. This exciting new charge leverages ORNL’s esteemed partnerships, our global leadership in high-performance computing, and our deep expertise in the materials science underlying quantum technologies. I’m honored DOE has entrusted us to develop this critical capability for advancing U.S. innovation and competitiveness.”
Stephen Streiffer, Director, Oak Ridge National Laboratory
“The renewal of the Quantum Science Center comes at a pivotal time for the nation’s quantum mission. Bringing quantum and high-performance computing together will redefine what’s possible in science and technology. The Quantum Science Center is charting that future.”
Gina Tourassi, Associate Laboratory Director, ORNL Computing and Computational Sciences Directorate
“The QSC is tackling the major scientific challenge of realizing quantum computation as a paradigm that will takes us beyond the capabilities of today’s leadership-class HPC systems.”
“All five thrust areas, and the projects that comprise them, are coordinated to realize the overall center goal of creating a new scientific ecosystem for QHPC.”
Travis Humble, Director, Quantum Science Center
