Draft quantum order tasks many agencies with reinvigorating the tech’s development
Detailed in a draft document obtained by Nextgov/FCW titled “Ushering In The Next Frontier Of Quantum Innovation,” the pending order tasks the director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy with setting a vision to keep the U.S. at the forefront of innovation in quantum technologies. This includes policy actions like lowering commercial barriers, improving access to foreign markets, partnering with ally nations, scaling a quantum-ready infrastructure, strengthening supply chains and continuing fundamental scientific research.
In addition to OSTP’s director, secretaries at the departments of Energy, Defense and Commerce will also play major roles in executing the new executive order.
New policy initiatives are among the first action items dictated in the document.
Within 180 days of the signing of the executive order, the director of OSTP and the secretaries from Commerce, Energy, and Defense will start work with the directors of national intelligence and the National Science Foundation — along with feedback from the National Science and Technology Council Subcommittees on Quantum Information Science and the Economic and Security Implications of Quantum Science — to update the National Quantum Strategy.
The National Science and Technology Council’s Subcommittee on Quantum Information Science released a national strategic overview for the technology in 2018 that was intended to meet the rising development of quantum technologies and ensure U.S. leadership in the field.
30 days after the strategy is updated, relevant agencies and departments are required to report to the OSTP director and the director of the Office of Management and Budget on what steps they plan to take to ensure they are implementing policy objectives it outlines.
OSTP, ODNI, Commerce, Energy and the Pentagon will coordinate to ensure expertise in manufacturing infrastructure and other capabilities support the effort, looking for discoveries to inform national security, commercial, and government technological applications.
The order would also create a new national effort to achieve a quantum computer for scientific applications and discovery — or QCSAD — with at least one housed in a Department of Energy-run facility.
In getting the QCSAD up to scale, Energy is tasked with engaging private sector partners to expedite its delivery to the scientific community. Commerce will also develop a plan to continue investments into commercial quantum companies in a bid to “de-risk” their technologies. And the departments of Energy, Commerce and Defense will be required to form a Center of Excellence to develop the tools to assess the capabilities of quantum computing systems within 180 days of the order’s signing.
The executive order also prioritizes the advancement of quantum sensors and quantum networking, partially as a means to support a distributed network of quantum computing systems.
Leadership from Energy, Commerce, NSF and NASA are all asked to submit individual five-year roadmaps with their plans to expand quantum sensing and networking, with application areas of focus specific to the four individual agencies. Agencies are also asked to submit roadmaps for ways that they can use prize challenges, advanced market commitments and other methods to encourage the private sector in developing the components needed for quantum technologies.
At the 180-day mark, the OSTP director will reconstitute the National Quantum Initiative Advisory Committee, a provision originally included in the 2018 National Quantum Initiative Act signed by Trump during his first administration, which expired in 2023. Lawmakers have since tried to reauthorize the act several times, supported by many private sector leaders, with the most recent version introduced by Sens. Todd Young, R-Ind., and Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., in early 2026.
Following formation, the NQIAC will craft recommendations for stimulating development of quantum-enabling technologies domestically.
The final two sections are devoted to cultivating a strong domestic workforce and fortifying international partnerships. OSTP will engage with academic partners to expand educational and training opportunities, and NSF leadership will initiate a network of National QIST Education and Teaching Institutes.
The secretary of Labor will also participate, partnering with NSF to track statistics to measure the progress of U.S. quantum workforce development.
The order also makes trade a key focus for international quantum technology partnerships. Commerce, the International Trade Administration and the U.S. Trade Representative will identify and provide recommendations to address foreign trade barriers, discriminatory treatment and other policies hindering U.S. competitiveness.
Post-quantum cryptographic provisions — designed to ensure that important data is protected by encryption methods that can stymie the power of an eventual quantum computer — are notably absent in the draft document, which does not mention the Department of Homeland Security and its subagency, the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency. CISA in particular has previously played a major role in advancing the need for post-quantum cryptographic migration as a means to further secure critical infrastructure.
The order does, however, focus on protective measures for QIST.
The director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation is tasked with leading and expanding its Quantum information Science and Technology Counterintelligence Protection Team to improve response to cybersecurity threats arising with a cryptographically-relevant quantum computer. The DNI, working through the National Counterintelligence and Security Center will also help coordinate budgets and resource allocation to “enhance QIST protections.”
As more private sector companies invest in the development of quantum physics-powered technologies, the federal government has paid increasing attention to both harnessing its potential and mitigating possible threats.
The White House did not respond to a request for comment by the time of publication.
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