IonQ Plans to Establish First Dedicated US-based QC Manufacturing Facility

During an inaugural ministerial meeting of the U.S.-Japan Economic Policy Consultative Committee (EPCC) in July, a joint statement was presented detailing a renewed and explicit commitment to regional economic stability, fairness, and hardiness. The statement, which includes an action plan, enumerates four main goals: realizing peace and prosperity through rules-based economic order, countering economic coercion and unfair opaque lending practices, promoting and securing critical and emerging technologies and critical infrastructure, and strengthening supply chain resilience. While renewed and steady efforts to maintain regional welfare are an end within themselves, this joint statement takes on an additional layer of complexity and purpose when considered in light of the recent U.S. CHIPS Act, a semiconductor promotion policy whose U.S.-only tone has the potential to cause regional turbulence and heighten international trade tensions.

In January of 2023, U.S. and European Union government representatives signed an administrative agreement that would bring artificial intelligence (AI) experts together to collaborate and advance AI research, compute technology, and related privacy and data protection elements. This agreement represents a step towards addressing the goals enumerated in the recent U.S.-EU Trade and Technology Council (TCC) commitment penned in December of 2022. The effort emphasizes responsible advancement and use of AI "to address major global challenges" in five key areas: Extreme Weather and Climate Forecasting, Emergency Response Management, Health and Medicine Improvements, Electric Grid Optimization, and Agriculture Optimization.