Photonic Inc has closed an investment round of more than US$200 million, giving the Vancouver-based quantum computing company a post-money valuation of US$2 billion.
The final close brings Photonic’s total capital raised to more than US$350 million, the company said on Tuesday. The round was led by Planet First Partners, a UK-based sustainable technology growth equity firm, and included new investors Business Development Bank of Canada (BDC), Export Development Canada (EDC), Bell Ventures, Firgun Ventures, InBC Investment Corp. and existing investor Mubadala Capital.
Photonic said the round’s first close, announced in January, had attracted strategic investors Royal Bank of Canada and TELUS, a Canadian telecommunications group, along with returning investors British Columbia Investment Management Corporation and Microsoft. It said the investor base reflected support across Canada, Europe, the UK, the US and the Middle East.
The funding comes as quantum computing companies race to develop machines that can move beyond laboratory demonstrations and support commercial workloads. Photonic is developing distributed quantum computing systems using what it calls its Entanglement First architecture, which combines silicon-based qubits with photonic connectivity. The company says this could allow quantum systems to scale across existing telecom infrastructure.
“This financing unites government, strategic partners, and international investors around a shared conviction: that commercial-scale quantum computing is within reach – and that its economic impact will be transformative,” said Don Mattrick, chief executive of Photonic. “We will use this funding to continue to hit key milestones, grow our team, and deepen the partnerships that will take us there,” he said.
He added that Photonic is already delivering on commitments to customers, including as part of the Canadian Quantum Champions Program and Stage B of the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency’s (DARPA) Quantum Benchmarking Initiative.
“Distributed architectures will be an important way to scale quantum technology, and Photonic is an important partner in advancing that future,” said Zulfi Alam, corporate vice-president at Microsoft Quantum.
“Their design allows quantum systems to operate over today’s fiber infrastructure, offering a practical and scalable path toward the large-scale systems that transformative applications will demand,” he said. “We’re pleased to continue our partnership as they take this next step.”
BDC said its investment was made through its StrongNorth Fund, which backs Canadian companies developing defense and dual-use technologies. Peter Suma, managing partner of the fund, said Photonic was building scalable quantum capabilities with global partners while drawing on Canadian talent.
Bell Ventures said it would collaborate with Photonic to develop sovereign, scalable quantum computing capabilities in Canada. TELUS also pointed to the potential integration of Photonic’s architecture with its PureFibre infrastructure.
Photonic, headquartered in Vancouver with operations in the US and the UK, has more than 160 staff members. It is developing quantum computers and quantum networks for applications including materials science, drug discovery, climate change and security.
The full announcement is available here.