Synthetic diamond creator Quantum Brilliance shines on with $23 million from National Reconstruction Fund & Breakthrough Victoria

The federal government’s $15 billion National Reconstruction Fund has made its second investment, taking a $13 million equity stake in Canberra startup Quantum Brilliance.

It follows $40 million for a mining tech manufacturer announced last month.

The National Reconstruction Fund Corporation (NRFC) funding is for QB to build Australia’s first quantum diamond foundry for its devices. It will also support the Research Hub for Diamond Quantum Materials the startup established with La Trobe University and RMIT University in 2022.

On top of that, existing backer Breakthrough Victoria, which previously invested $8 million, has tipped in another $10 million to ensure the quantum startup sets up in the state.

Quantum Brilliance (QB), founded in 2019, using research undertaken at Australian National University, is the world’s leading developer of miniaturised quantum computing products, using synthetic diamonds to produce smaller quantum chips that can operate at room temperature.

The NRFC investment is a top up of QB’s $26 million Series A, announced in February 2023. Existing investors include local VCs Investible, Jelix Ventures, CSIRO-backed Main Sequence and Rampersand.

The NSW government also awarded QB $1.44 million from its quantum commercialisation fund last year.

In September, the German government backed Quantum Brilliance as part of a $58 million plan to build the world’s first mobile mobile quantum computer, which they hope to have running by 2027.

Quantum Brilliance CEO and cofounder Mark Luo compared the potential of their technology to the runaway success of US AI chip maker Navidia.

“We are building a future where Australia leads the world in diamond quantum technology, much like NVIDIA has done in the AI industry,” he said.

“This capital partnership not only strengthens our leadership in the global quantum diamond value chain but also positions Australia to become a hub for mass deployable quantum diamond devices.”

Quantum diamonds have a wide range of potential uses across quantum computing, sensing and networking.

NRFC Chair Martijn Wilder said the startup is at the forefront of technological advancements with the potential to significantly accelerate the quantum technology revolution.

“Quantum Brilliance’s quantum diamond foundry is the first of its kind globally and is underpinned by world-leading research at both the Australian National University and leading Victorian universities, which was conducted in the broader context of Australia’s global leadership in diamond quantum technology over the last two decades,” he said.

“This investment in fabricating quantum diamonds in Australia will provide the local quantum technology industry with a significant boost. It will create many new highly skilled jobs and give Australia an advantage in the global race to develop mass deployable quantum technologies.”

The NRFC capital for Quantum Brilliance is a modest investment in comparison to the $940 million in loans and equity the federal and Queensland governments are spending to bring US hardware firm PsiQuantum to Brisbane to build the world’s first quantum computer.