Rigetti Computing (Nasdaq: RGTI) has officially expanded its on-premises footprint with the sale of a 9-qubit Novera™ QPU to the University of Saskatchewan (USask). This acquisition marks a historic milestone as USask becomes home to the first university-owned and operated, vendor-supported, full-stack, open-architecture quantum computer in Canada. The system is housed within USask’s Centre for Quantum Topology and its Applications (quanTA), under the leadership of Dr. Steven Rayan, positioning the institution as a central hub for quantum innovation within the newly defined “Quantum Corridor” linking Saskatchewan and Alberta.
The system’s architecture serves as a flagship demonstration of the Novera QPU Partner Program, an ecosystem designed for modularity and interoperability. The core 9-qubit Rigetti processor is integrated with a Zero Point Cryogenics dilution refrigerator (an Edmonton-based partner), Qblox control hardware, and QuantrolOx software for automated qubit characterization and tuning. While the system currently features 14 total superconducting qubits across two chips, its “full-stack” nature allows researchers to bypass the limitations of remote cloud access, providing the hands-on environment necessary for low-level hardware optimization and architectural research.
This initiative is backed by a combined investment of $2.33 million CAD ($1.7 million USD), including $1.93 million CAD ($1.4 million USD) from Prairies Economic Development Canada (PrairiesCan) and $400,000 CAD ($287K USD) from Innovation Saskatchewan. The funding reflects a strategic push to diversify the Prairie economy by fostering a deep-tech ecosystem that utilizes quantum acceleration for regional strengths. By establishing on-premises hardware, USask effectively transitions from a consumer of quantum cloud services to a primary developer of quantum technologies, a move Dr. Rayan compares to “flying the actual plane” rather than using a simulator.
The research roadmap for the quanTA Centre focuses on high-impact sectors, specifically agriculture, health sciences, and defense. In collaboration with the Vaccine and Infectious Disease Organization (VIDO), researchers will utilize the system to accelerate drug and vaccine discovery. Additional projects include developing quantum-secure data encryption for national defense and optimizing processes within the energy and agricultural industries. This interdisciplinary approach is bolstered by a formal partnership with the University of Calgary’s Quantum City, ensuring a coordinated effort to build a competitive quantum workforce in Western Canada.
From a corporate perspective, the sale highlights Rigetti’s strategy of providing high-performance, on-premises hardware to support national laboratories and academic centers. Rigetti’s superconducting qubits boast gate speeds of 50–70ns, which the company notes is approximately 1,000 times faster than competing modalities like ion traps or neutral atoms. While the Novera QPU supports the R&D community with a 9-qubit entry point, it shares the same underlying technology as Rigetti’s larger Cepheus™ modular architecture (36 to 108 qubits), offering USask a clear upgrade path as their quantum computational needs scale.
For further details on the Novera QPU specifications and USask’s quanTA roadmap, consult the official Rigetti announcement here and the University of Saskatchewan’s research update here.
April 4, 2026
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