IonQ has announced a definitive agreement to acquire Skyloom Global, a U.S.-based leader in high-performance optical communications infrastructure, in a move intended to bolster IonQ's global quantum networking and sensing capabilities.
Skyloom, founded in 2017, has made its mark by delivering nearly 90 optical communications terminals (OCTs) for the Space Development Agency (SDA) for both satellite-to-satellite and satellite-to-ground laser communications. With this track record, Skyloom is positioned as a scalable producer of OCT hardware. Post-closing, Skyloom's CEO, Marc Eisenberg, will report to Frank Backes, President of Quantum Infrastructure at IonQ.
IonQ describes the acquisition as a "pivotal acceleration" of its mission to build a full-stack quantum-secure communications and distributed entanglement infrastructure. The integration of Skyloom's optical links into IonQ's quantum infrastructure platform is expected to unlock immediate performance enhancements -- including up to a 500 % increase in data throughput and a reduction in latency for key applications from many hours to under one hour. These gains stem from the added capability of combining optical networking with quantum connectivity across both terrestrial and orbital domains.
Skyloom's inclusion strengthens IonQ's ability to offer a fully integrated quantum networking stack encompassing compute, sensing, communications and entanglement layers. This purchase follows several recent acquisitions by IonQ -- including Qubitekk, Capella Space, Lightsynq, and a super-majority stake in ID Quantique -- which collectively position IonQ as the only company globally building across quantum computing and quantum-secure communications.
The acquisition is subject to standard regulatory approvals and is expected to close upon satisfaction of those approvals.
KEY QUOTES:
"This acquisition marks a pivotal acceleration for IonQ by adding high-bandwidth optical link capabilities to our global quantum platform. These optical links form the backbone for quantum-secure communications and next-generation quantum networking and distributed quantum entanglement infrastructure."
"Skyloom's technology expands IonQ's total addressable market while increasing downlinking speeds for our existing offerings."
Niccolo de Masi, Chairman & CEO of IonQ