Google has explained its decision to decline participation in the $2 billion quantum computing funding announced by the US government last month. The tech giant stated that the funding from the Trump administration came with conditions that would have prevented the company from moving as quickly as it wanted in its quantum computing efforts.
Google's COO Explains Decision
Speaking at the Semafor Tech Summit in San Francisco, Google Quantum AI Chief Operating Officer Charina Chou said the company decided not to pursue the funding because of restrictions attached to the program. “In this one specific case, I think there were various conditions that came with the funding,” Chou said. Google wants “to move as quickly as we can to a quantum computer,” and is working with the US government in “other ways,” she added.
The comments come after the US government announced $2 billion in grants and investments across nine quantum computing companies last month, including IBM and PsiQuantum, as part of efforts to strengthen domestic quantum technology development and compete with China.
Call for More Research Funding
While Google opted out of the funding program, Chou said the company continues to support greater government involvement in the quantum computing sector. According to Chou, increased investment in basic scientific research would help accelerate progress across the industry. She noted that many of the research institutions Google collaborates with are national laboratories and academic organisations conducting foundational work in quantum science.
“The government can do more” to invest in and support the sector, Chou said, adding that Google would like to see “increased funding for basic research.” Chou also pointed to challenges facing academic recruitment as immigration and visa policies become more restrictive. Although she said Google has not encountered major hiring difficulties, she acknowledged that attracting international talent has become more complicated.
She said she is seeing “some challenges in that realm when it comes to recruiting academics from overseas.” Chou argued that access to global talent will be critical if the US wants to remain competitive in quantum computing.
“We’re going to need to get the best talent from all over the world to make this technology possible,” Chou said. She linked talent recruitment and research investment to the broader competition between the United States and China in advanced technologies. China “is a formidable competitor. There’s absolutely no question about that,” Chou added.
Different Approaches Among Companies
However, not every quantum computing company has taken Google's approach. Speaking at the same event, PsiQuantum co-founder Pete Shadbolt said government investment in quantum computing is a natural step given the technology's strategic significance.
“It was ‘really natural’ for the US government to invest in the sector because of quantum’s ‘profound geopolitical implications. It has national security implications,’” Shadbolt noted. “I try to spend as much time as I can building the quantum computer, but I do run around Washington,” he added.
