Illinois Quantum & Microelectronics Park celebrates groundbreaking

Related Midwest and CRG were recently joined by Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker, Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle, Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson, Alds. Peter Chico (10th) and Greg Mitchell (7th), other city and state officials, project partners, labor leaders and community stakeholders to celebrate the groundbreaking of the Illinois Quantum & Microelectronics Park (IQMP), the first phase of Quantum Shore Chicago, a 440-acre master-planned technology and innovation district along the Chicago lakefront.

Located on the former U.S. Steel South Works site at 8080 S. DuSable Lake Shore Drive in the South Chicago neighborhood, Quantum Shore Chicago lays the groundwork for future development in sectors including quantum computing, technology, healthcare and other innovation-driven fields. Related Midwest and CRG are receiving financing from funds managed by Blue Owl Capital on both the land acquisition and vertical development of facilities for IQMP’s anchor tenant, PsiQuantum, a Palo Alto, Calif.-based company aiming to build and deploy America’s first million-qubit scale, fault-tolerant quantum computer. 

Gov. Pritzker has made investing in quantum computing a major priority during his administration. In addition to the $500 million investment in IQMP, Illinois previously invested $200 million to support the Chicago Quantum Exchange, the first state to make that large of a commitment to quantum.

Created through a public-private partnership with state and federal agencies, the IQMP will occupy 128 acres on the southern end of the site. In addition to PsiQuantum’s 80,700-square-foot office and research facility — the first of several buildings the firm will eventually occupy — the campus will include a cryoplant and equipment labs, as well as research and office spaces where universities and private companies can work side by side. This first phase of the IQMP is being designed by Chicago-based architects Lamar Johnson Collaborative.

Other firms that have committed to IQMP are IBM, which will house its state-of-the-art Quantum System Two Computer at the park and partner with the State of Illinois to create a new National Quantum Algorithm Center, marking the first Fortune 500 company to join the site; Australian quantum startup Diraq, which was recently awarded a Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) Quantum Benchmarking Initiative Stage A contract; and Infleqtion, a global leader in quantum tech, which will headquarter its global computing operations on-site as part of a $50 million investment to develop and build the world’s first utility-scale, neutral atom quantum system. Under DARPA’s Quantum Proving Ground Program, members of the quantum research and development community who secure competitively awarded DARPA funding will conduct their work at the park, using shared facilities while helping offset infrastructure costs. The National Quantum Algorithm Center (NQAC), a signature initiative to be housed at IQMP, will bring together quantum algorithm experts, hardware providers, software developers and end users from across industries, serving as a central gateway for companies to tackle real-world challenges, develop quantum algorithms and access cutting-edge quantum resources.

Northwest of the development, Advocate Health Care will build a $300 million, 52-bed hospital that will enhance the community’s access to high-quality health care and further establish the area as a powerhouse of breakthrough science, health and technology.

Clayco will serve as general contractor for the construction of the initial phase of the Illinois Quantum & Microelectronics Park. Two permits have been issued for the core and shell and interior buildout of the first building on the site for the quantum computing facility addressed at 3733 E. 87th.