Commerce Department Awarded $1 Billion to Anderon
The investment aims to standardize quantum chip manufacturing through shared, production-scale facilities.
Updated on Oct. 8, 2026 in Quantum Computing
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On September 16, 2026, the U.S. Department of Commerce awarded $1 billion to Anderon, a quantum foundry established by IBM. IBM is matching the investment with $1 billion in cash, intellectual property, and assets to accelerate hardware production.
Why it matters
The industry requires stable, high-volume manufacturing sources to transition from experimental research to scalable quantum computing. Shared fabrication facilities lower the barrier to entry for designers by offloading the cost and technical overhead of chip fabrication.
Anderon utilizes production-scale 300-millimeter wafer lines to ensure compatibility with standard semiconductor equipment. This represents a significant shift from existing custom manual fabrication methods, such as those currently yielding 50 percent at other facilities.
The players
Anderon
A quantum foundry headquartered in Albany, N.Y., that provides production-scale 300-millimeter wafer manufacturing.
IBM
A global technology company focused on enterprise computing and quantum research that has deployed over 90 quantum systems since 2016.
U.S. Department of Commerce
The federal executive department overseeing the government's investment in industrial technology and manufacturing capacity.
The details
Anderon employs automated manufacturing lines to manage precise patterning, material deposition, and oxidation processes necessary for building quantum chips. The foundry provides process design kits, which function as collections of digital files specifying the geometric and physical rules for hardware designers. These tools standardize the fabrication process, allowing external designers to leverage the foundry's infrastructure to build reliable components.
Timeline
2016: IBM began deploying quantum systems.
2021: IBM shifted its quantum R&D to the Albany line.
September 16, 2026: The Commerce Department announced the $1 billion award.
End of 2026: Anderon expects to deliver its first wafers to outside customers.
The Tech Race
The foundry model follows the precedent set by the imec facility in Belgium, which provides shared fabrication services for the global semiconductor industry. By aggregating manufacturing resources, Anderon aims to match the scaling success seen in traditional silicon development.
Quantum hardware designers will gain access to standardized, production-grade manufacturing capacity, shifting away from experimental, custom-built processes. While the foundry is expected to ship wafers to outside customers by late 2026, the primary benefit for the broader developer community will be a reduction in the capital investment required for prototype development.
The takeaway
The transition to a foundry model marks a shift toward industrializing quantum hardware development. Developers should monitor for the release of process design kits as the primary indicator that the Anderon facility is ready for third-party production by late 2026.
What happens next
Anderon plans to begin delivering production wafers to external customers by the end of 2026.
Further reading
For more on the hardware architecture powering current systems, visit Quantum Computing.
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Should the federal government provide large grants to private companies to develop new manufacturing facilities?
