IonQ (NYSE: IONQ) today announced it has signed a $54.5 million contract with the United States Air Force Research Lab (AFRL).
The focus of the AFRL partnership is to enable the scaling, networking and deployability of quantum systems. The project is intended to advance quantum networking compatibility with existing telecommunications infrastructure, interoperability with different quantum systems and devices, and deployability of systems suitable for various environments.
The contract will be delivered over four years.
IonQ said it has nearly doubled revenue every year since going public in 2021 and has .announced $72.8 million in bookings year-to-date while expecting to meet or exceed its bookings guidance of $75-95 million for the year.
IonQ announced last month that it was selected by the Applied Research Laboratory for Intelligence and Security (ARLIS) for a quantum networking contract to design a first-of-its-kind, networked system for blind quantum computing.
In addition, IonQ announced a multi-million-dollar extension of its contract with Amazon Web Services (AWS) to offer its quantum computers via Amazon Braket, the quantum computing service of AWS. The company also announced a $9M deal with the University of Maryland to provide quantum computing access. IonQ’s approach addresses performance and scale while simultaneously delivering enterprise-grade quantum solutions.
“We are thrilled to be at a major inflection point for the company and the industry. No other publicly traded pure-play quantum computing company has nearly doubled revenue each year since going public, nor have they approached the $100M bookings mark so quickly,” said Peter Chapman, President and CEO of IonQ.
“We are pleased to continue our partnership with IonQ,” said Michael Hayduk, Deputy Director of the Air Force Research Laboratory, Information Directorate. “Working with industry partners, we can significantly advance the Department of Air Force’s efforts to integrate quantum networks into future operations, bolstering our national defense.”
“I am proud to be the leading voice in Congress to strengthen the partnership between IonQ and the Rome Air Force Research Lab which strengthens our AFRL-Rome, New York facility as the center of gravity for quantum computing research within the Department of Defense. This collaboration is bringing new quantum computing jobs to Rome, and the work done there will ensure the U.S. remains the global defense leader,” said Congresswoman Elise Stafanik.
