Quantum computing firm Infleqtion has deployed the UK’s first operational 100-physical-qubit quantum computer at the National Quantum Computing Centre (NQCC) in Harwell, UK.

Delivered in December 2025, the system has allowed the NQCC to achieve its aim of deploying a 100+ qubit NISQ-era machine by the end of the previous calendar year. Infleqtion first announced plans to deploy hardware at the NQCC, as part of the center’s quantum testbed program in 2024.

Built on the company’s Sqale platform, in a statement, Infleqtion said the 100-qubit system would act as “foundational infrastructure,” allowing researchers and industry professionals to begin working with large-scale quantum computers across areas including advanced materials, energy systems, and complex optimization.

Sqale is the first neutral-atom platform of this scale deployed in an operational national facility, the company claimed. In addition to supporting supply-chain readiness and application exploration across the UK quantum ecosystem, it also enables users to evaluate performance, benchmark applications, and study how neutral‑atom systems scale.

Founded as ColdQuanta and spun out from the University of Colorado in 2007, Infleqtion develops and designs instruments and systems for quantum technology applications. In September 2025, the company announced plans to go public via a Special Purpose Acquisition Company (SPAC) merger with Churchill Capital Corp X. The company began trading on the New York Stock Exchange in February 2026, following the completion of the deal.

“The NQCC’s quantum computing testbed is among the first of its kind, advancing innovation at a global level,” said Matthew Kinsella, CEO of Infleqtion. “This latest achievement with Sqale reflects the progress and potential of our neutral-atom architecture and marks an important step toward larger-scale quantum systems. We’re proud to partner with the NQCC on a platform that is critical to advancing quantum computing and reinforces the UK’s leadership in this essential technology.”

Lord Patrick Vallance, Minister of State for Science, Research, and Innovation, added: “Infleqtion’s progress is a significant milestone, helping move the UK beyond research toward real-world uses. These sorts of advances are vital in paving the way for us to be able to use quantum computers to deliver tangible benefits. With the talent and research expertise that we have on offer in the UK, this is an encouraging next step which helps cement our position as a world leader in one of the defining technologies of our generation.”

UK gov’t announces £1bn quantum investment to retain homegrown talent

The news comes as the UK government announced £1 billion ($1.3bn) quantum funding pledge in an effort to help retain homegrown quantum talent.

Speaking to the Guardian during a visit to NQCC today (March 17), Liz Kendall, Secretary of State for Science, Innovation, and Technology, said the UK needed to learn lessons from the US dominance in the AI sector and ensure UK-based startups, engineers, and researchers didn’t leave for competing countries.

“I do look at what’s happened on AI… [and] I do think we need to learn the lessons and make sure we give our brilliant scientists, spinouts and startups the ability to stay here and make it happen. And that requires a government that is bold and ambitious and confident in these technologies of the future,” Kendall said. “Too many people feel they have to move to the US in order to get the funding and support they need to grow and scale their company.”

The £1bn ($1.3bn) funding pledge will be used to help companies design large-scale quantum computers for use by scientists, researchers, the public sector, and businesses, the government said.

Successive governments have invested heavily in the UK’s quantum sector, including the establishment of the NQCC in 2024 and financial support for five research hubs, quantum career fellowships, and quantum apprenticeships.

The current Labour government is also focused on delivering its five ‘Quantum Missions,’ first announced by the UK’s previous Conservative administration in November 2023.

The missions provide milestones for investment and research that will secure what the government calls the UK’s “status as a world leader in the technology,” and include the expectation that every NHS Trust will use quantum sensing-enabled solutions, in addition to the deployment of quantum navigation systems on aircraft and mobile networked quantum sensors by 2030.

The final two missions have a deadline of 2035 and will see quantum computers capable of running one trillion operations, in addition to the deployment of an advanced quantum network that will enable the future Quantum Internet.