Quantum computing startup Oratomic has raised US$300 million in one of the largest Series A funding rounds in the sector as it seeks to build the first commercially viable utility-scale quantum computer capable of outperforming existing systems.
The funding round was co-led by ARCH Venture Partners, Spark Capital, and Khosla Ventures, with participation from Bezos Expeditions, Index Ventures, General Catalyst, Lowercarbon Capital, Bain Capital, and several other investors.
The investment will support Oratomic’s efforts to develop a large-scale quantum computer before the end of the decade, joining an increasingly competitive race among deep-tech companies pursuing different architectural approaches to quantum computing.
Building Quantum Computers with Optical Tweezers
Founded by physicists from the California Institute of Technology (Caltech), Oratomic uses lasers functioning as optical tweezers to trap and manipulate individual atoms that serve as the foundation of its quantum computing architecture.
The company was established after its researchers discovered that their approach could dramatically reduce the number of qubits required for quantum error correction compared with previous assumptions.
Error correction is widely considered one of the most significant technical barriers facing the quantum computing industry. Because quantum systems are highly sensitive to environmental noise and disturbances, improving fault tolerance is viewed as essential to transforming experimental systems into commercially useful computing platforms.
Skipping the NISQ Era
Unlike many quantum computing companies that are currently commercializing so-called Noisy Intermediate-Scale Quantum (NISQ) systems for researchers and enterprise customers, Oratomic says it has no plans to develop or sell these interim technologies.
Dolev Bluvstein, co-founder and Chief Executive Officer of Oratomic, said the company’s recent scientific breakthroughs fundamentally changed the founding team’s view of the industry’s prospects.
“Previously, none of us could have been convinced to start a quantum computing company because we believed it was too distant a possibility. But when we achieved this latest breakthrough, we all changed our minds at the same time,” Bluvstein said.
Competing in the Race for Utility-Scale Quantum Computing
Bluvstein also emphasized that Oratomic should not be directly compared with PsiQuantum, another high-profile startup pursuing utility-scale quantum computing systems.
PsiQuantum, which was valued at approximately US$7 billion in September last year, is aiming to bypass the NISQ stage entirely and deliver a commercially viable one-million-qubit quantum computer by the end of next year.
Oratomic is pursuing a similar long-term vision but through a different technical architecture centered on neutral atoms and optical tweezer technology rather than alternative qubit designs used elsewhere in the industry.
Why It Matters
The race to develop utility-scale quantum computers is increasingly becoming one of the most important technological competitions of the coming decade. While generative AI has dominated recent investment cycles, quantum computing is widely viewed as a foundational technology capable of transforming industries ranging from pharmaceuticals and materials science to cybersecurity and financial modeling. Oratomic’s US$300 million funding round underscores growing investor confidence that commercially viable quantum computing may arrive sooner than previously expected.
