Quantum Transistors and the EIC Accelerator: A Diamond Quantum Chip

Quantum Transistors, based in Binyamina, Israel, and led by co-founder and chief executive Shmuel Bachinsky, builds qubits from nitrogen-vacancy (NV) centres, atomic defects in diamond, and links each qubit optically through a silicon photonic chip, aiming for a processor that avoids the proximity noise of densely packed qubits and the deepest cryogenic cooling. Its EIC Accelerator project, QUANTITATIVE, "A million qubit quantum computer", receives an EU contribution of €2,499,999 and runs from December 2024 to November 2026, according to CORDIS. The EIC awarded up to €17.5 million, a €2.5 million grant plus a "future equity investment of €15 million through the EIC Fund", the largest in that round, according to The Quantum Insider.

Despite the project's title, its stated objective is "to lay the foundation" for a platform that can later scale to tens or hundreds of thousands of qubits, by building and integrating three layers: qubits, photonic interconnect and control. In the first year, the report says, the second-generation qubit layer was produced in several cycles in the company's own diamond fab, the photonic layer was made in a commercial silicon photonics fab and "passed the first phase out of three", and a first integration with a third-party control platform was achieved, according to CORDIS. In December 2025 the company announced single- and two-qubit gate fidelity of 99.9988% using error-protected gates, a ninefold cut in error per gate, according to a paid company release.

Where Quantum Transistors Stands Now

The company's website news page has not been updated since April 2025, and its December 2025 fidelity announcement went out as a paid press release. It has not announced a multi-qubit processor, a customer or any funding round other than the EIC award. As a private Israeli company, its accounts are not public.

The Technology: Qubits in Diamond, Linked by Light

NV centres in diamond hold quantum states and emit photons, so qubits can be connected optically rather than by physical proximity. Quantum Transistors says this avoids the crosstalk that limits dense qubit arrays and reduces dependence on the very low temperatures superconducting qubits need. Its fidelity result comes from composite pulses robust to frequency and amplitude errors, benchmarked at room temperature, according to the EIC report.

What the EIC Award Promised, and What the Record Shows

The project runs until November 2026, so it is too early to judge it. The headline promise of a million-qubit computer is a long-term vision; the project itself aims to build and integrate the three layers into a synchronised device. After a year, each layer had progressed separately, but the integrated device is not reported.

1. Qubit layer, second generationProducedOwn diamond fab.
2. Photonic layerPhase 1 of 3Commercial fab.
3. High-fidelity gatesReported99.9988%.
4. Integrated three-layer deviceNot reportedProject target.

The Money

The €15 million equity commitment was the largest of the March 2024 cut-off, but it was described as a future investment, and neither the company nor the EIC Fund has announced that it was made. For a company with no other disclosed round, that equity would be most of its funding.

What Cannot Be Checked

Why Europe Should Care

The EIC chose to make its biggest bet of the round on an Israeli quantum hardware company. If diamond qubits linked by light scale, the payoff is large; so is the technical risk, and the public record so far covers components rather than a working processor.

The Verdict

Quantum Transistors and the EIC have not been asked for comment for this article. It is based entirely on public records and published statements, linked throughout.