Washington Made a $2 Billion Quantum Bet, But Can Either ETF Match It?

Key Points

• The federal government has committed more than $2 billion in CHIPS Act incentives to quantum computing companies and foundries.
• QTUM offers diversified exposure to quantum computing and machine learning, while CHPX is more heavily concentrated in AI semiconductor companies.
• Both ETFs have outperformed several pure-play quantum stocks in 2026, although neither directly replicates the government's investments.

In recent years, the federal government has become a surprisingly active participant in the stock market, building up equity stakes in a growing number of companies. Many of these deals are with metal and mining companies, but a number are also with relatively niche quantum computing firms. Beyond federal contracts—which remain an important source of revenue for many quantum companies seeking steady sales—the government is providing billions in support to individual firms to boost domestic quantum tech and production capacity.

Investors expecting these investments to move the needle for companies seeking a foothold in a competitive and growing industry might start by investing in the same firms the government has targeted. Another simpler approach, though, involves using quantum computing exchange-traded funds (ETFs) to mimic (or at least come close to) the government's involvement in the space. The most obvious bet on the quantum computing industry is likely the Defiance Quantum ETF NASDAQ: QTUM, but a broader fund like the Global X AI Semiconductor & Quantum ETF NASDAQ: CHPX may offer a different way to access the themes of the government's investments.

CHIPS Act Incentives and Foundry Support Dominate

In May, the Commerce Department signed letters of intent for more than $2 billion in CHIPS Act incentives. Individual quantum companies like D-Wave Inc. NASDAQ: QBTS would receive $100 million, while two major foundries—IBM NYSE: IBM and GlobalFoundries Inc. NASDAQ: GFS—would get $1 billion and $375 million, respectively. In exchange, the Commerce Department would receive a minority, non-controlling stake in each firm.

QTUM Doesn't Provide Full Coverage, But Other Qualities Are Attractive

This list of nine companies would need to represent the core of a government-interest-focused quantum ETF investment. QTUM holds a basket of 86 companies involved in the quantum industry and is fairly well diversified, with the largest position only representing roughly 2.4% of total assets.

The issue with QTUM is that it has a global focus across developed markets, which necessarily includes many companies that the U.S. government has not invested in. The fund holds IBM but does not have a position in GFS, reflecting its spotty exposure to the broader chipmaker industry.

On the other hand, QTUM is a common-sense choice for a broad quantum industry investment thanks to its relatively low expense ratio of 0.40% and the fact that, with $5.4 billion in managed assets and a one-month trading volume averaging near 340,000 shares, it remains the most popular quantum fund by a wide margin.

The diversification has been key: QTUM has easily outperformed several leading domestic quantum companies this year. QTUM has returned almost 20% year to date (YTD), while D-Wave, for example, has fallen about 60% over the same period.

CHPX Finds the Government's Themes, If Not Individual Stocks

CHPX has a broader focus than QTUM—it targets firms in the AI semiconductor and quantum computing ecosystems—but it has a narrower list of positions and only holds 39 names. Like QTUM, CHPX also has an international focus, but many of its largest stocks are domestic chipmakers. Interestingly, IBM and GFS do not appear on the list.

At the same time, CHPX also holds a number of individual quantum firms, including QBTS. The fund is thus a bit more thematically in tune with the government's investments, even if it lacks some of the key individual names identified by the Commerce Department.

Where CHPX stands out is in performance; it has returned nearly 50% YTD. Much of this is driven by outperformance among those non-quantum chipmaking stocks, a benefit of the diversification built into the strategy. For an expense ratio of 0.50%, only 10 basis points higher than QTUM, this extra performance may be well worth it for investors. At the same time, though, CHPX has a much smaller asset base, so liquidity may be a concern.

Without a single ETF that provides an exact copy of the recently acquired government stakes in quantum firms and foundries, investors seeking to mimic those investments may need to resort to buying individual names. Still, as both QTUM and CHPX have demonstrated this year, there may be a returns benefit to be found by spreading out an investment across the industry. Individual quantum names have begun to distinguish themselves from the broader space. Still, the share price performance across the industry has tended to drag all of these stocks down in 2026, boosting the appeal of a diversified approach to building exposure while also offering a potential entry point.