President Donald Trump signed two executive orders Monday aimed at speeding up the development of the cold fusion of computers: quantum computing. One of the orders focused on technological acceleration, and the other focused on risk mitigation should the first one succeed. According to the first order, the federal government must team up with private industry and academia to “initiate the era of quantum-enabled scientific discovery”—to build a quantum computer that can perform scientific research, in other words. The second order (which actually came first, chronologically) is called “Securing the Nation Against Advanced Cryptographic Attacks,” and it’s meant to bring federal cybersecurity into the post-quantum computing era, and “assist critical infrastructure owners and operators with their transitions.”
Way back in 2018, Trump signed a bill into law called the “National Quantum Initiative Act,” whose aims were similar to the first order from Monday, and which also included money for the relevant research. Then last year, representatives from companies like Google, who perform AI research, went to the House of Representatives to urge, well, more money. The relevant funding had lapsed.
