US plans to build world's first fault-tolerant quantum computer: Check details

Darío Gil, undersecretary for science for the US Department of Energy, presides over programmes advancing artificial intelligence and quantum science as the Trump administration attempts to slash federal spending on science.

His organisation recently set out the aim of developing the world’s first 'fault-tolerant' quantum computer for addressing scientific challenges by 2028, in reaction to an executive order on quantum innovation issued by President Donald Trump.

In its first funding request for Genesis in March, the DoE received a record 5,000 proposals, 2.5 times as many as have ever been submitted for a DoE funding round before. The agency will soon announce a select number of winners, who will collectively receive $293 million worth of funding.

According to Gil, however, not all academics have shown excitement about the project, but "academics are educated to be sceptical".

As part of Genesis, the DoE has been tasked with developing an overarching AI platform, imbued with a variety of models, that can connect and query scientific instruments, supercomputers and data sets at the country's 17 national laboratories.

However, the investment is made against concerns that scientists may struggle with getting funding for their basic research work and job losses due to AI technologies.

The national objective of the Genesis Mission is to drive the revolution of AI and quantum computing and to double the impact of American science and engineering in a decade and half the time in the National Lab Complex.

Gil held the position of IBM Senior Vice President and Director of Research, in which he oversaw the largest and most influential corporate research lab in the world, and was elected to the National Academy of Engineering "for his contributions to artificial intelligence and quantum computing".