Intel has agreed to acquire Israeli quantum computing software company Classiq in a transaction reportedly valued at approximately $2.3 billion, marking one of the largest acquisitions in the emerging quantum technology industry.
The agreement was announced by Intel on October 26, 2026. The chipmaker confirmed that it had signed a definitive acquisition agreement but did not publicly disclose the purchase price.
Israeli publication Calcalist and Bloomberg reported the $2.3 billion valuation, citing sources familiar with the transaction. Calcalist described the consideration as a combination of cash and Intel shares.
The deal is expected to close during the first half of 2027, subject to regulatory approvals and other conditions.
What Does Classiq Do?
Founded in 2020 by Nir Minerbi, Amir Naveh and Yehuda Naveh, Classiq develops software that helps organizations design, optimize and execute quantum algorithms.
Minerbi serves as CEO, while the two Navehs bring experience in engineering and quantum computing research.
The company focuses on a problem that has limited quantum software development: programming quantum computers requires developers to understand complex hardware constraints and low-level quantum circuits.
Unlike conventional computers, quantum systems perform computations using qubits, which can represent quantum states and interact through specialized operations.
Developers traditionally construct algorithms through sequences of quantum gates, while accounting for restrictions such as the number of available qubits, circuit depth, connectivity and hardware errors.
As algorithms become more complex, manually optimizing these circuits becomes increasingly difficult.
Classiq attempts to automate that process.
Its platform allows developers to describe the intended algorithm at a higher level before generating a quantum circuit suitable for execution.
The approach resembles electronic design automation software used in the semiconductor industry.
Just as chip designers can describe hardware behavior without manually placing every transistor, Classiq wants quantum developers to define computational objectives without manually constructing every gate.
How Classiq's Quantum Software Works
Classiq's technology centers on Qmod, its high-level quantum programming language, and an automated synthesis engine.
Developers describe an algorithm using a Python-like interface, including constraints and intended computational behavior.
The Classiq platform then searches for circuit implementations that satisfy the model's requirements.
Its software can optimize characteristics such as gate count, circuit depth, qubit allocation and hardware connectivity.
Classiq also provides tools for analyzing circuits and running programs across quantum simulators and different hardware providers.
Hardware independence is central to the product.
Different quantum computers use different technologies, including superconducting qubits, trapped ions and other architectures.
Classiq is designed to let developers work at a higher abstraction level rather than rewrite their applications for every hardware configuration.
That makes it potentially valuable to enterprises exploring quantum computing before committing to one hardware supplier.
Intel says Classiq's software is already used by dozens of global enterprises. Previously reported customers include BMW, Rolls-Royce and AT&T.
The company has also expanded its platform to incorporate AI-assisted quantum software development.
Why Intel Wants Classiq
Intel has spent more than a decade researching quantum computing hardware, particularly silicon spin qubits.
Its strategy is based on applying expertise from semiconductor manufacturing to the production of quantum processors.
Silicon spin qubits offer the possibility of using manufacturing techniques related to those already deployed in advanced chip production.
However, developing capable quantum hardware is only part of creating a commercial computing platform.
Customers also need software, development tools, programming interfaces and applications that can use those processors.
Classiq would provide Intel with a substantial portion of that software layer.
The acquisition could allow Intel to offer a more complete quantum computing platform combining processors, control systems and algorithm-development tools.
Intel CEO Lip-Bu Tan described the transaction as an important step toward building an integrated quantum computing business.
The company says it intends to continue supporting Classiq's integrations with third-party quantum hardware after closing.
That commitment matters because customers may be reluctant to adopt software that becomes exclusive to one processor manufacturer.
Classiq's Funding and Valuation History
Classiq raised $110 million in Series C financing in 2025, bringing cumulative announced funding at that point to approximately $173 million.
Its investors have included Entrée Capital, Team8, Norwest Venture Partners, HSBC, Samsung Next and other strategic and institutional backers.
Additional investments subsequently brought reported cumulative financing to approximately $200 million.
The company's 2025 valuation was estimated at $600 million to $700 million.
If the reported $2.3 billion acquisition price is confirmed, the transaction would represent more than three times that earlier valuation.
Calcalist described the agreement as the largest quantum computing acquisition to date, although Intel has not independently characterized it that way.
The Quantum Software Competition
Classiq operates alongside established quantum development ecosystems, including IBM's Qiskit, Google's Cirq and Microsoft's Azure Quantum.
These platforms provide different combinations of programming tools, simulation capabilities and hardware access.
Classiq's differentiation centers on automatically translating high-level algorithm descriptions into optimized quantum circuits.
Its commercial proposition is that organizations can develop quantum applications without maintaining large teams of specialists who manually optimize every circuit.
Intel's acquisition could accelerate adoption by combining Classiq's software with an established semiconductor company's research and manufacturing resources.
However, integrating an independent software platform into a hardware company may create tension between openness and proprietary optimization.
The Biggest Risk: Quantum Computing Is Still Early
Despite substantial investment, quantum computing has not yet achieved broad commercial adoption for general enterprise workloads.
Many current systems remain constrained by errors, limited qubit counts and the difficulty of scaling reliable computation.
Quantum algorithms must eventually demonstrate meaningful advantages over classical computing methods for commercially important tasks.
Even highly capable development software cannot eliminate those underlying hardware limitations.
Intel must also integrate Classiq while preserving the relationships that made its platform valuable across different quantum hardware providers.
The strategic value of the acquisition depends on whether Intel can combine scalable quantum hardware with accessible software before the market reaches widespread commercial adoption.
Classiq provides an established development platform, but the larger test remains whether quantum computing can move from research and experimentation into repeatable production use.