Quantum Corridor, a fiberoptic communications network connecting Chicago and Northwest Indiana, closed its $10 million Series A round.
Eight family offices and individual tech investors funded the raise. It brings Quantum Corridor’s total funding to over $27 million.
Quantum Corridor formed in 2021 as a partnership with the state of Indiana. It was established to enable tech innovators in Indiana and Illinois to exchange data nearly instantaneously.
Quantum Corridor was funded through a $4.0 million READI grant with the Indiana Department of Transportation and Northwest Indiana Forum. It closed its $17 million seed round in early 2023.
“The confidence of our investors matches the enthusiasm of researchers, private industry and defense leadership, all of which will come together on this network to reach human breakthroughs we cannot even yet fathom,” said Thomas Dakich, Quantum Corridor CEO, in a press release.
Quantum Corridor’s current network originates in Hammond at the Digital Crossroads Data Center. The network stretches 14 miles to Chicago’s ORD10 Data Center.
The $10 million Series A funds will help support the network’s expansion. It will extend from Hammond to Crane Naval Surface Warfare Center and Crane West Gate in Southwest Indiana via West Lafayette and Indianapolis.
Quantum Corridor will utilize 263 miles of new and existing fiber-optic cable beneath the Indiana Toll Road. It will link data centers, quantum research facilities, life sciences and genome scientists and hyperscalers.
Quantum Corridor will build facilities to house entanglement nodes along the network's route. They will serve as relay points to ensure transmission efficiency. The facilities will also act as mini data centers, offering customers, researchers and students access to facilities.
“With a quantum safe environment, we are now ready to expand south toward the numerous world-class academic research institutions, financial and pharmaceutical giants and defense hubs that are ready to link onto Quantum Corridor to compute and network,” Ryan Lafler, Quantum Corridor president and CTO, said.
Quantum Corridor Inc. drives tech infrastructure to Indiana. It aims to create an information-sharing platform for institutions such as Chicago Quantum Exchange, defense contractors, research hubs and universities. Restricted to research and education centers and to entities that can use high bandwidth, the network will stretch 263 miles.
