In September, the Department of Energy awarded Lawrence Berkeley Labs of $3 million per year to construct a quantum computer and the software needed to operate it.

Siddiqi's team have already produced an 8 qubit superconducting system, with the ultimate goal of reaching 64 qubits. This would be the first time anyone in the U.S. passes what's called the "quantum–classical boundary," achieving a quantum processor that would surpass any digital supercomputer.

The team will build the computer and study its properties and applications over five years.