Pentagon launches $350M quantum computing initiative to counter China

The US Department of Defense announced a $350 million initiative to maintain leadership in quantum computing, explicitly framed as a response to accelerating US-China competition over military applications of advanced technology. The program, led by the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering, signals a formalized push to secure a strategic edge in a critical emerging technology. The scope and specific projects remain unspecified, but the move underscores the intensifying technological rivalry between the two powers.