White House Looks to Speed Up Transition to Quantum Computing with Pair of Executive Orders

Both target dates are earlier than benchmarks originally established during the Biden administration and reflect increased urgency surrounding the development of quantum computing. The still experimental technology relies on the principles of quantum mechanics to perform calculations much faster than conventional computers can. While researchers have made significant progress in recent years in developing functional quantum computing systems, various technical hurdles remain to be overcome before the technology can be commercialized.

Quantum computing has lately attracted significant interest from major technology companies and a host of startups, as well as from investors. Shares of many quantum computing companies have soared in recent months, according to the Wall Street Journal, as companies race to develop deployable systems. Startup PsiQuantum raised $1 billion in September 2025 at a $7 billion valuation led by BlackRock, Temasek and Nvidia. The Commerce Department has also doled out billions in grants and awards to private companies to support quantum computing research.

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At signing ceremony Monday Trump was joined by IBM chief executive Arvind Krishna and Ruth Porat, president of Google parent Alphabet among other tech executives.

Related: Quantum Computing and the Future of Cyber Security

The administration hopes that the ambitious 2028 goal for a scientifically relevant quantum computer will serve as a stepping stone to systems that can be deployed by businesses, a White House official told the Journal. The executive order directs the Energy Department to develop technical specifications the use in measuring progress toward that goal. It also directs the Commerce and Defense Departments, along with NASA, to deploy quantum sensors within the next five years that can be used as an alternative to the global positioning system (GPS).

“These policies will drive transformational growth in existing and entirely new industries, and manufacturing, drug discovery, energy, agriculture, and more,” the White House top science advisor Michael Kratsios said, according to Decrypt. “Quantum breakthroughs mean innovation, economic growth, national security that will benefit the American people for decades to come.”

The security focused EO directs federal agencies to develop systems that can resist quantum-enabled attacks by 2031, far sooner than the 2035 target set during the previous administration. Current encryption systems, such as those used for Bitcoins and other crypto currencies, are based on algorithms that produce values that conventional computers cannot crack due to the enormous number of calculations needed to untangle the knot. But quantum computers are expected to be able to perform the necessary calculations fast enough to enable hacking, making development of quantum-resistant encryption an urgent federal priority.

“This executive order matters because it puts dates on a security transition that can no longer stay theoretical,” Rebecca Krauthamer, chief executive of QuSecure, a quantum security company, told the Journal.

The order also gives priority to transition plans to harden critical infrastructure such as utilities and water plants.