Superconducting hardware developer Rigetti Computing, Inc. (NASDAQ: RGTI) has executed a definitive agreement with the U.S. Department of Commerce for a $100 million federal R&D award under the CHIPS and Science Act. Issued through the CHIPS Research and Development Office, the capital deployment converts the previously announced Letter of Intent (LOI) into a formal contract to resolve physical scaling bottlenecks in superconducting quantum processors.
The contract structures funding across three engineering projects: compressing and miniaturizing high-density readout control electronics, engineering a multi-stage cryostat architecture to expand dilution refrigeration capacity, and advancing in-house fabrication capabilities at Rigetti’s Fab-1 facility to manufacture high-connectivity multi-chiplet QPU architectures. As a condition of the award, the Department of Commerce will receive a minority, non-controlling equity stake in Rigetti.
| [ Rigetti CHIPS Act $100M Award & Technical Scope ] | ||
|---|---|---|
| Award Structure | Engineering Project Track | System & Fab Integration |
| • Total Value: $100 Million | • Miniature Readout Electronics | • Integrated On-Chip Signal Processing |
| • Program: CHIPS R&D Office BAA | • High-Capacity Cryostat Architecture | • Multi-Order Expansion of Cryo Cooling |
| • Consideration: Govt Minority Equity | • Advanced Chiplet Fabrication | • Fab-1 High-Connectivity QPU Scaling |
The funding supports Rigetti’s chiplet-based hardware roadmap. Building on its 108-qubit Cepheus-1-108Q system (composed of twelve 9-qubit chiplets) and its on-premises Novera QPU offerings, the agreement provides capital to scale production of multi-chiplet architectures with 50-70 nanosecond gate speeds for defense, national laboratory, and commercial cloud deployments.
Review the official press release via Rigetti Investor Relations here and examine our previous coverage of the initial U.S. Department of Commerce Proposes $2 Billion CHIPS Investment Across Nine Quantum Hardware and Foundry Developers announcement here.
September 14, 2026
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