President Trump signed two executive orders aimed at advancing quantum computing in the United States, presenting them as a step to keep the country ahead in a technology that officials described as a major scientific and economic priority. Trump said the United States is already the leader in the field and framed the orders as a way to extend that lead.
The first executive order launches a national effort to produce a quantum computer capable of performing important scientific calculations and to develop quantum-enabled sensors. According to the administration, it tasks the Department of Energy with creating what officials called a scientifically relevant quantum computer.
Officials said the machine built under the Department of Energy would help pave the way for even larger quantum computers for the private sector. Beyond the computer itself, the effort is also set to focus on sensors and networking, areas seen as central to the broader development of quantum technology.
The second order turns to security. It directs federal agencies to transition to what is known as quantum cryptography, a measure intended to protect government systems as quantum technology matures and raises new risks to the way data is currently encrypted and shared.
Trump said the two orders pair innovation and security, arguing that as the technology moves forward, the two have to be balanced. The stated goal is to ensure that American systems remain trusted, secure and safe, with the administration treating the build-out of quantum capability and its protection as parts of the same push.
Trump tied the announcement to earlier steps, recalling that in 2018 he signed the National Quantum Initiative Act into law, which he said led to a doubling of federal government investment in the area. Officials noted that since then there has been a big leap in private-sector investment, with research starting to pay off in commercial applications.
The administration described quantum as one of its two top science and technology priorities and said the new orders would turbocharge work already under way. Trump thanked the American companies the government has been working with, casting the effort as an attempt to strengthen the country's position in a field expected to shape the future of computing.