Jerry Petersen 
- IonQ has completed its acquisition of SkyWater Technology, which will now operate as a subsidiary
- According to IonQ CEO Niccolo de Masi, the acquisition will accelerate his company’s quantum roadmap, provide it a U.S.-based supply chain and help solidify its vision of being a leader in the quantum industry
- The acquisition will see SkyWater CEO Thomas Sonderman continue to lead his organization but report to de Masi
Quantum computing company IonQ has acquired semiconductor foundry SkyWater Technology. The transaction was closed following the receipt of required regulatory approvals, IonQ said Friday.
What Happens to SkyWater Following the Acquisition?
Moving forward, SkyWater will retain its name, operate as an IonQ subsidiary and continue serving its customers as a semiconductor foundry. SkyWater CEO Thomas Sonderman will continue to lead the subsidiary but now report to Niccolo de Masi, IonQ’s chief executive.
SkyWater investors will get $15 cash and 0.4883 shares of IonQ stock for each share of SkyWater they held at closing.
Commenting on the development, Sonderman said, “Being part of IonQ will accelerate multiple engineering pathways for next-generation quantum chips, delivering speed, precision, and scale. Importantly, SkyWater remains fully committed to all of our semiconductor foundry customers and will continue as the quantum supplier of choice with an even broader set of quantum sensing and quantum networking solutions for our customers and partners.”
How Will the Acquisition Benefit IonQ?
On the part of IonQ, de Masi said the acquisition “crystalizes” his company’s vision of being an industry leader, merchant supplier and ecosystem builder in quantum computing. He also said buying SkyWater accelerates IonQ’s quantum roadmap and secures a scalable, U.S.-based supply chain.
“Building upon our existing merchant supplier track record providing quantum solutions for our customers, we expect this acquisition to accelerate all quantum platforms across the industry,” de Masi noted.
