PsiQuantum

🇦🇺 This Week in Australian Startups #180, 4th October 2026

Weekly roundup reporting Australian startup funding rounds and government grants, a venture fund close, agreed acquisitions, an IPO pricing, a collapse, plus executive hires and AI policy developments.

Blackbird nails 2nd $1 billion fund

Blackbird has locked in a second billion-dollar fund — its sixth, slightly bigger than the last — bringing in new institutional backers, and the article recalls portfolio wins, writedowns and failures.

Also Business News Australia

Q-Day: why quantum readiness can't wait, with Vikram Sharma, QuintessenceLabs

Allens' Cyber Brief podcast hosts QuintessenceLabs founder and CEO Vikram Sharma discussing quantum computing threats to encryption, harvest-now-decrypt-later attacks, and the governance steps boards should take toward post-quantum readiness.

NRF trebles its stake in Silicon Quantum Computing with another $40 million

The National Reconstruction Fund has put another $40m into Sydney quantum chip maker Silicon Quantum Computing, following its $20m investment three months earlier, part of a larger round still underway.

Brisbane Airport out, Moreton Bay in: PsiQuantum picks new site for its $940m quantum computer build

PsiQuantum has relocated its $940m government-backed quantum computing project to Moreton Bay after dropping the Brisbane Airport site, with groundbreaking set for June following timeline slippage flagged in Senate Estimates.

Also Startup Daily·Startup Daily

Silicon Quantum Computing receives $20 million NRF boost

The National Reconstruction Fund has put $20 million into Sydney quantum chip maker Silicon Quantum Computing via a SAFE note, following its smaller-than-planned 2023 Series A and a similar NRF bet on Diraq.

Also Startup Daily·SmartCompany·Startup Daily·Startup Daily

NRF tips $20 million into Diraq for homegrown quantum computing

The National Reconstruction Fund has invested $20 million in Sydney quantum startup Diraq, an equity stake the government fund says will aid domestic production and hiring ahead of a planned 2029 product launch.

Also Startup Daily·SmartCompany·SmartCompany·Startup Daily·Startup Daily·Forbes Australia

AI AI investors: Data centres and artificial intelligence startups fire up Australian VC backing

A quarterly report on the Australian venture market finds Q3 2025 investment passed a billion dollars, led by a Singapore data centre company's raise, with AI drawing premium valuations and bubble warnings.

Also Startup Daily·Startup Daily

Queensland Venture Capital Report 2025

Cut Through Venture's analysis of Queensland's FY2025 ecosystem: $417 million over 109 deals, climate tech and enterprise software leading, plus standout rounds from EatClub, EcoJoule Energy, FairSupply and WearOptimo.

Queensland startup funding bounces back with $417 million raised over financial year

SmartCompany covers Cut Through Venture's report on Queensland's 2024-25 venture funding, which rebounded to $417 million, led by SafetyCulture's Series E, with SaaS and climate tech the standout sectors.

Quantum chips startup Diraq secures $15 million towards new raise

Quantum computing venture Diraq has banked $15 million toward an unfinished round, with earlier backers joined by two new funds, pushing its cumulative funding beyond US$137 million.

Also SmartCompany·Startup Daily

Diraq expands into Chicago's quantum cluster after landing US gov contracts

Quantum computing company Diraq, a UNSW spin-out led by Andrew Dzurak, has signed to base itself at a Chicago quantum park alongside PsiQuantum, adding recent US Energy Department and DARPA awards.

Also Forbes Australia

Quantum startup jags $2 million pre-Seed round to team up with PsiQuantum

Nine-month-old Sydney quantum startup Iceberg Quantum raised $2 million pre-seed, led by Blackbird with LocalGlobe participating, to build cheaper fault-tolerant designs for PsiQuantum's photonic platform.

From quantum computing to quesadillas: Top 12 biggest capital raises of 2024

Year-end roundup ranking 2024's twelve largest startup raises, headed by PsiQuantum's $940 million government-backed quantum computing round, plus Guzman y Gomez's ASX listing and Betashares' Temasek investment.

Synthetic diamond creator Quantum Brilliance shines on with $23 million from National Reconstruction Fund & Breakthrough Victoria

Quantum Brilliance, a Canberra-based maker of diamond-based quantum chips, has drawn fresh equity from the National Reconstruction Fund and more from Breakthrough Victoria to build a diamond foundry, with prior grants and backers recapped.

Industry and science minister Ed Husic wants you to know something is going to happen, soon

Industry minister Ed Husic told a Tech Council summit the National Reconstruction Fund is close to its first investments after asking for a $300m drawdown; the piece recaps federal tech funding moves including PsiQuantum's.

$610 million for ANZ startups in the September quarter as AI investments grow

Quarterly tally finds ANZ startups raised far less than the prior period, with Hammertech's raise the largest, SafetyCulture pairing capital with a stake sale, AI firms prominent, and women founders still drawing little backing.

Manufacturing news briefs – stories you might have missed

AuManufacturing roundup of brief industry news: Wide Open Agriculture banks a $7.5 million raise, Liontown adds a lithium offtake partner, Osteopore signs Zimmer Biomet for distribution, plus quantum, defence, rail and recycling items.

Eight Aussie startups that raised $118.8 million this week

Weekly roundup of eight Australian funding rounds, led by Samsara Eco's $100m Series A extension; Diraq, 1Breadcrumb, Aquila, NRN, Klean, Bearhug and Sindy Labs also secured capital, and Klean won a Queensland grant.

Also TechCrunch Australia·SmartCompany·@AuManufacturing·Techboard·Startup Daily·Startup Daily·SmartCompany·Startup Daily·SmartCompany·Startup Daily·@AuManufacturing·@AuManufacturing·Forbes Australia·@AuManufacturing

Semiconductor Startup Funding Looks To Bounce Back After Lackluster 2023

Crunchbase's analysis finds venture funding for chip startups rebounding in 2024 on AI demand, recapping large recent deals at Black Semiconductor, Tenstorrent, PsiQuantum, Celestial AI, Recogni and Eliyan, plus Astera Labs' IPO.

Also Crunchbase News·Startup Daily

‘Record demonstration’: Dark horse in quantum race passes new milestone

Quantum computing startup Diraq announced record qubit control fidelity and chip-making partnerships with GlobalFoundries and IMEC; the piece also recounts its Quantonation-led Series A, early Allectus backing, and PsiQuantum's government funding.

Also Startup Daily·Startup Daily·Startup Daily·SmartCompany·Startup Daily

Budget 2024: It seems the federal government went dutch with Queensland on the $940 million PsiQuantum deal, but the really surprising part is a $28m fine print cost

Federal budget documents show Canberra's PsiQuantum commitment at $466.4 million via Export Finance Australia, plus $27.7 million for oversight, and recall Blackbird joining the quantum company's 2021 Series D.

Also Startup Daily·Startup Daily·Startup Daily·Startup Daily·Startup Daily·Forbes Australia·Forbes Australia

Nine things startups need to know about the 2024-25 federal budget

Budget-day rundown for Australian startups: a quantum computing co-investment, a green manufacturing fund, AI centre money, offshore landing pads and small business measures, while most sector wishlists went unmet.

Labor bets big on quantum with $1 billion deal for PsiQuantum and multimillion-dollar Sydney Uni hub

The Australian federal and Queensland governments are investing $940m in PsiQuantum, which will open a Brisbane regional headquarters; $18.4m will fund a national quantum centre at the University of Sydney.

Also Dealroom·Forbes Australia·SmartCompany·SmartCompany·SmartCompany·Startup Daily·Startup Daily·Startup Daily·Startup Daily·Forbes Australia

PsiQuantum to build $1bn fault tolerant quantum computer

The federal and Queensland governments say they will put nearly a billion dollars into PsiQuantum for a fault-tolerant quantum computer in Brisbane, anchoring the company's regional headquarters and creating 400 roles.

Foundry Mentor: David Bell, Remedy Robotics

Blackbird interviews Remedy Robotics co-founder Dave Bell about his move from medicine to surgical robotics and his mentoring in its Foundry program, noting Foundry applications are open.