The global push for fault-tolerant quantum computing reached a new stage this month, marked by two very different strategies in the U.S. and Europe. In the U.S., IonQ announced plans to buy SkyWater Technology for about $1.8 billion to bring its supply chain in-house.
Focus in Europe is distributed, with a public-sector-driven approach, highlighted by the roadmap shared at the
HiPEAC 2026 conference in Kraków, Poland. This shows a split in the industry: The U.S. is moving toward vertical integration and local manufacturing, while Europe is emphasizing academic partnerships, telecom infrastructure, and the integration of high-performance computing networks.
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IonQ’s main reason for the acquisition is to help scale up its technology.
Trapped-ion quantum computers, which use electrically charged atoms (ions) as the basic units of information, rely on micro-electromechanical systems (MEMS)—tiny machines built onto semiconductor chips—to control individual ions. By bringing SkyWater’s manufacturing in-house, IonQ hopes to reduce the long wait times associated with using outside suppliers.
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IonQ’s main reason for the acquisition is to help scale up its technology.
Trapped-ion quantum computers, which use electrically charged atoms (ions) as the basic units of information, rely on micro-electromechanical systems (MEMS)—tiny machines built onto semiconductor chips—to control individual ions. By bringing SkyWater’s manufacturing in-house, IonQ hopes to reduce the long wait times associated with using outside suppliers.
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IonQ’s main reason for the acquisition is to help scale up its technology.
Trapped-ion quantum computers, which use electrically charged atoms (ions) as the basic units of information, rely on micro-electromechanical systems (MEMS)—tiny machines built onto semiconductor chips—to control individual ions. By bringing SkyWater’s manufacturing in-house, IonQ hopes to reduce the long wait times associated with using outside suppliers.
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On Jan. 26,
IonQ and SkyWater Technology agreed that IonQ would buy the Bloomington, Minnesota-based semiconductor foundry. The deal, valued at $35.00 per share in cash and stock, aims to make IonQ the first fully vertically integrated quantum platform company.
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The main benefit of this deal is speed. In semiconductors, each design cycle can take months. By owning the foundry, IonQ expects to cut down wafer development times and move from serial to parallel prototyping.
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The main benefit of this deal is speed. In semiconductors, each design cycle can take months. By owning the foundry, IonQ expects to cut down wafer development times and move from serial to parallel prototyping.
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IonQ expects these improvements to allow functional testing of its 200,000-qubit quantum processing units by 2028. These chips should support about 8,000 high-quality logical qubits, which is seen as key to solving real-world problems. The development of IonQ’s 2-million-qubit chip could also be sped up by as much as a year.
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IonQ expects these improvements to allow functional testing of its 200,000-qubit quantum processing units by 2028. These chips should support about 8,000 high-quality logical qubits, which is seen as key to solving real-world problems. The development of IonQ’s 2-million-qubit chip could also be sped up by as much as a year.
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Thomas Sonderman, CEO of SkyWater Technology, emphasized that the merger aligns manufacturing precision with quantum innovation. “Joining forces with IonQ will accelerate multiple engineering pathways for next-generation quantum chips, delivering speed, precision, and scale,” Sonderman stated. The acquisition also secures IonQ’s status as a partner to the U.S. defense sector, as SkyWater operates a DMEA-accredited Category 1A Trusted Foundry, essential for handling classified and mission-critical workloads.
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While IonQ is focusing on vertical integration, Europe is building a continent-wide network. This approach was a main topic at the
HiPEAC 2026 conference in Kraków, where Krzysztof Kurowski, technical director at the Poznań Supercomputing and Networking Center (PSNC), discussed the challenges and opportunities of integrating quantum systems into existing computing systems.
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The European strategy, led by the EuroHPC Joint Undertaking, does not focus on consolidating chip manufacturing under a single company. Instead, it centers on the “EuroQHPC-Integration” project, which aims to connect six quantum computers in Poland, the Czech Republic, France, Italy, Spain, and Germany into a single supercomputing networking block.
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The European strategy, led by the EuroHPC Joint Undertaking, does not focus on consolidating chip manufacturing under a single company. Instead, it centers on the “EuroQHPC-Integration” project, which aims to connect six quantum computers in Poland, the Czech Republic, France, Italy, Spain, and Germany into a single supercomputing networking block.
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“Quantum computers are a little bit more complicated…you probably cannot quite easily [snap them together like] Lego boxes and connect with existing HPC systems,” Kurowski observed. He argued that the immediate hurdle for the industry is not just qubit count, but the “software-hardware handshake,” specifically the latency involved in connecting classical supercomputers with quantum accelerators.
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Europe’s approach relies heavily on leveraging its strong telecommunications sector and public infrastructure rather than hyperscale corporate investment. Kurowski noted the absence of U.S.-style tech giants in the European market.
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“We don’t have here in Europe big hyperscalers…but we have a pretty strong telco sector,” Kurowski said, highlighting that telecommunications companies are driving investment in quantum communication and quantum key distribution (QKD) networks.
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The differences between the two regions are both technical and organizational. IonQ’s plan relies on solving manufacturing challenges, such as producing complex electrode structures and silicon interposers (devices that allow electronic signals to pass between microchips) to move ions without overheating.
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SkyWater’s work in
“More-than-Moore” technologies, which go beyond traditional silicon technology and include advances like through-silicon vias, which are vertical electrical connections passing through a silicon wafer, and advanced packaging, helps address these hardware issues.
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In contrast, Europe is focusing on middleware and system architecture. Kurowski described the
“PIAST-Q” project in Poznań, which connects an AQT trapped-ion system with traditional high-performance computing resources. The aim is to build a “system of systems” in which users can run jobs using quantum processors for certain tasks, such as combinatorial optimization or quantum machine learning, while classical CPUs handle most of the work.
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This focus on integration has led to building large physical networks. Kurowski pointed out that PSNC has deployed over 1,700 kilometers of QKD channels across Poland; QKD uses quantum physics to securely share encryption keys. This may be the largest network of its kind in Europe.
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This focus on integration has led to building large physical networks. Kurowski pointed out that PSNC has deployed over 1,700 kilometers of QKD channels across Poland; QKD uses quantum physics to securely share encryption keys. This may be the largest network of its kind in Europe.
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This infrastructure is designed to support distributed quantum computing, in which qubits at different locations can be linked via optical connections. “We would like to take advantage of having a dedicated fiber channel between Poznań and Warsaw…to imagine having qubits entangled remotely,” Kurowski explained.
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IonQ’s purchase of SkyWater puts pressure on other hardware companies to show they can manufacture at scale. By having its own supply chain, IonQ reduces the risks posed by global supply disruptions and capacity constraints that often affect the semiconductor industry.
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The deal allows SkyWater to continue serving external customers as a merchant supplier, creating a unique hybrid revenue model that helps fund IonQ’s R&D.
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The deal allows SkyWater to continue serving external customers as a merchant supplier, creating a unique hybrid revenue model that helps fund IonQ’s R&D.
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On the other hand, the European model reduces technology risk by supporting a variety of approaches. By funding different types of quantum systems, such as superconducting circuits, trapped ions, and neutral atoms, Europe ensures its scientists can use a wide range of platforms.
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However, this approach comes with the challenge of standardizing interfaces across different hardware vendors. Kurowski stressed the need for common application programming interfaces—standardized ways in which different software or hardware components interact—such as the Quantum Device Management Interface—to avoid fragmentation.
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Looking ahead to 2030, the industry faces a choice between two scaling strategies. The U.S. model, as shown by the IonQ-SkyWater deal, is betting that controlling both the atomic and silicon components will lead to faster fault tolerance.
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The European model, discussed at HiPEAC 2026, bets that quantum computing’s value will come from smoothly integrating these machines into the current global high-performance computing and telecommunications infrastructure.
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Both strategies acknowledge that the time for lab experiments is ending, Kurowski said, pointing out that the industry is entering a phase in which reliability and dedicated infrastructure will shape the economy’s future.
