Federal agencies are developing new quantum sensing and networking initiatives as the Trump administration moves from setting national quantum goals to putting them into action, White House quantum policy chief Brad Blakestad said Sept. 25.
Speaking at the Quantum World Congress in College Park, Md., Blakestad said agencies are working to implement a June executive order that set governmentwide goals for advancing quantum computing, sensing, and networking.
“Agencies are currently drafting their research and development plans for sensing and networking,” said Blakestad, director of the National Quantum Coordination Office within the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP).
The executive order calls for the United States to field at least three quantum sensors by 2028, while also advancing quantum networking and developing a scientifically relevant fault-tolerant quantum computer.
Blakestad pointed to ongoing efforts across the Energy Department, National Science Foundation, Commerce Department, and Defense Department as pieces of that broader push.
“There is actually a tremendous amount of activity that’s going on right now, given this executive order within the U.S. government, and we will release more as it becomes available,” Blakestad said.
The administration is looking beyond basic research toward commercialization. Blakestad said the forthcoming update to the national quantum strategy needs to account for the technology’s increasing maturity and examine “how can we better commercialize and how can we lower the barriers that are slowing down our quantum companies.”
Meanwhile, Blakestad said the White House is working with Congress on reauthorizing the National Quantum Initiative, adding that OSTP is “happy to see progress” and hopes to eventually see a reauthorization measure reach the president’s desk.
The National Quantum Initiative is a federal framework established by law, while the national quantum strategy is the specific policy roadmap and plan used to direct federal efforts in quantum information science.