Insider Brief
- California Governor Gavin Newsom signed legislation establishing a strategic framework for fusion energy and announced a new $30 million investment for quantum and deep-space research.
- The new fusion legislation calls for a statewide fusion strategy, expanded research opportunities, a commercial fusion plan, fusion manufacturing development, and an assessment of advanced nuclear technologies.
- The $30 million quantum investment follows California’s 2025 launch of Quantum California and adds to existing state funding, workforce programs, research infrastructure, and industry initiatives.
PRESS RELEASE — Standing alongside faculty and staff at a quantum lab at UC Berkeley, Governor Newsom announced he has signed legislation to accelerate the development of quantum and fusion energy in California by investing in the state’s research hubs. The Governor also announced a new $30 million investment to further cutting-edge quantum and deep-space research, leverage public-private partnerships, and cultivate a quantum start-up ecosystem. This new budget allocation follows landmark legislation the governor signed in 2025, launching Quantum California, a statewide initiative bringing together universities, national laboratories, private companies, investors, and policymakers to cement the state’s position as a global leader in quantum technology.
California has always been where big ideas become real-world breakthroughs. Today, we continue our work to grow quantum and fusion technologies in our state — creating a stronger framework and workforce to the infrastructure needed to support it. Through cutting-edge research and continued investments, we are moving past what is possible, and instead shaping what comes next. — said, Governor Gavin Newsom .
A b-roll package of the Governor signing this legislation can be downloaded here.
California is the national leader in emerging technologies, fostering an educated and skilled workforce capable of delivering scientific breakthroughs that propel humanity into the future. Quantum and fusion — both priority sectors under the California Jobs First Economic Blueprint — are key examples of California’s leadership, with the state leading the way in research and development, talent, and new discoveries.
Fusion is the process that powers the sun — the same process that stars use to produce energy — and could one day provide a new source of clean, reliable electricity. Quantum technology can help build more powerful computers and open new possibilities to solve complex problems in areas like medicine, energy, and materials science.
As countries around the world compete to lead in these technologies, California is helping keep the United States at the forefront by strengthening the research, workforce, and innovation ecosystem needed to turn breakthrough ideas into new industries and good-paying jobs.
The bills signed by the Governor will:
- Create a strategic plan for the development of fusion energy in California.
- Expand the number of opportunities for fusion research and development.
- Develop a commercial fusion strategy for California.
- Advance the development of fusion manufacturing.
- Develop a comprehensive assessment with public input on the potential for new nuclear power plants that could help the state achieve 100% zero-carbon electricity by 2045 and the potential role of “advanced” nuclear technologies to support critical infrastructure in California.
New legislation to power California’s quantum and fusion dominance:
- AB 2647 by Assemblymember Lisa Calderon (D-Whittier) — Energy: nuclear power plants: assessment.
- SB 925 by Senator Jerry McNerney (D-Pleasanton) — Fusion energy: State Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission: strategic plan: certification and environmental review.
“California has made substantial progress towards its climate goals. But fusion energy has the potential to provide nearly limitless clean, safe, and reliable power, while creating an economic ecosystem that will rival Silicon Valley,” said Sen. Jerry McNerney (D-Pleasanton) . “SB 925 lays the groundwork for widespread adoption of fusion energy in the state and will help ensure that California is a fusion technology leader in the coming decades.”
“I appreciate the Governor’s leadership in signing AB 2647. Advanced nuclear technology could help meet California’s long-term electricity needs,” said Assemblymember Lisa Calderon (D-Whittier) . “Nuclear energy is the United States’ largest source of clean power, supplying nearly 20% of the nation’s electricity while avoiding over 470 million metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions. Fifty years ago, California made a choice based on the technologies and needs of that era. Today, we face an entirely different reality. Our grid needs firm clean power. Our families and businesses need affordable electricity. AB 2647 gives us the information to make a new choice, based on the technologies and needs of our century.”
Fusion: Clean Energy to Power the Future
Fusion occurs when two atoms slam together to form a heavier atom, releasing a tremendous amount of energy — the same energy that powers the sun. Fusion has the potential to revolutionize the energy industry, help achieve energy abundance and security, and help meet the nation’s growing clean energy needs.
California’s fusion ecosystem is the largest in the nation, boasting world-leading federal research facilities and private investment firms that drive the state’s fusion innovation system. California hosts both of the nation’s premier fusion research centers: the DIII-D National Fusion Facility in San Diego, the United States’ largest magnetic-confinement (tokamak) user facility; and Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory’s National Ignition Facility , the world’s most energetic laser for inertial-confinement fusion, where researchers achieved the first laboratory fusion ignition in December 2022, marking a critical step in fusion viability.
California is also currently incorporating fusion into its energy future through the Fusion Research and Development Innovation Initiative administered by the California Energy Commission. Last year, Governor Newsom signed legislation to accelerate the growth and development of fusion energy by creating the Fusion Research and Development Innovation Initiative to distribute $5 million toward advancing research and development into fusion energy.
Defining the Future of Quantum
Quantum computing could solve equations in mere minutes that would take existing computers thousands of years to complete — offering immense potential to enhance medication discovery, improve artificial intelligence tools, combat climate change, and model complex scenarios. Quantum sensing can revolutionize how we see the world, and quantum communication can usher in unhackable quantum networks.
California is putting its research strength, skilled workforce, and innovation economy to work to ensure that the technologies of the future are developed, tested, and scaled to benefit communities across the Golden State:
- National leader: California ranks #1 in the nation for quantum-skill job postings and semiconductor manufacturing jobs , and leads in Gross Regional Product in physical sciences and engineering.
- Scientific powerhouse: The Golden State is home to more than 35 Nobel-winning breakthroughs in quantum science and technology.
- World-class talent: California is producing the nation’s top talent in quantum, leading in quantum computing research with centers at UC Berkeley, UCLA, the University of Southern California, and Stanford, as well as the Google Quantum AI Campus affiliated with UC Santa Barbara, Microsoft’s Station Q lab with UC Santa Barbara, and the Amazon Web Services Center for Quantum Computing at Caltech.
- Research investment: In 2025, Governor Newsom announced $4 million to support quantum research and innovation, helping ensure the state continues to produce a strong talent pipeline, foster new research and development, and create opportunities for these technologies of the future to grow across the state.
- Research infrastructure: California is transforming a former mall into UCLA Research Park , a world-leading research and innovation hub that is home to the UCLA Center for Quantum Science and Engineering . The center conducts research on quantum science and technology to dramatically increase information-processing power by harnessing the unusual behavior of subatomic particles.
- Premier research hubs: California is the only state home to both the National Science Foundation and the Department of Energy quantum federal research centers.
- Career pathways: The Quantum FAST Challenge , a $2.7 million grant — applications open now — will fund higher education to build the quantum talent pipeline and demonstrate applied use cases, while the $3 million Workforce Accelerator Fund will support more in quantum and fusion career pathways, including routes that don’t require a four-year degree.
- Critical minerals: California leads the nation in producing critical minerals, anchoring the quantum hardware stack end-to-end , accounting for approximately 15% of global rare-earth supply, over one-third of global boron supply, and multiple other critical minerals — with over 30 active projects throughout the state that secure inputs for magnets, photonics, and advanced electronics.
- Supply-chain investment: Recently, California Competes tax credits, extended by Governor Newsom, fortified the semiconductor and critical mineral supply chain that quantum depends on, with the most recent round generating $1 billion in private investment , including Samsung Semiconductor in San Jose and MP Materials’ $120 million expansion of the only rare earth facility in the U.S.
- Jobs and momentum: Governor Newsom recently announced California will support 20,000 jobs through $48.5 million in California Jobs First grants, including more than $9.7 million for quantum workforce development and regional coordination across Southern California. Days later, the National Science Foundation renewed the UC Berkeley-led Challenge Institute for Quantum Computation with $37.5 million, extending its national quantum computing mission from California for another five years.
World-Leading Economy
Since Governor Newsom took office, California’s annual GDP has grown by more than $1.18 trillion , reaching $4.25 trillion in 2025. First-quarter 2026 economic output reached an annualized $4.4 trillion , following annual GDP gains exceeding $200 billion in each of the previous two years.
California also remains home to more small businesses than Texas or Florida, and continues to be America’s startup capital — with more than 4.3 million small businesses employing 7.6 million Californians.
In the first quarter of 2026, California’s economy grew at a 3.7% annualized pace — marking its best quarterly growth ranking since 2013 and one of the fastest growth rates in the nation and well above U.S. growth of 2.1%. Meanwhile, Texas grew 0.9% and Florida 1.6% during the same period.
The Golden State continues to be:
- #1 state for new business starts
- #1 state for high-tech business
- #1 state for agriculture
- #1 state for venture capital
As the world’s fourth-largest economy, California leads the nation where it matters most: creating new businesses, attracting venture capital, driving technological innovation, expanding advanced manufacturing, growing high-tech industries, and producing more than any other state.