The Israel-U.S. Binational Industrial Research and Development (BIRD) Foundation has approved conditional grant funding for a joint quantum computational chemistry initiative between Tel Aviv-based Qarakal Quantum and California-based Quantum Elements.
The partnership is one of seven deep-tech collaborations selected by the BIRD Board of Governors in its September 2026 cycle, which awarded $7.4 million in conditional grants to unlock approximately $20 million in total public-private project investment. Evaluated by reviewers appointed by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and the Israel Innovation Authority, BIRD grants fund up to 50% of a venture’s project budget (capped at $1.5 million) on a non-dilutive basis, repaid via royalties once commercial revenue is generated.
| [ BIRD Foundation: Quantum Chemistry Project Overview ] | ||
|---|---|---|
| Project Dimension | Institutional Framework | Scope & Primary Deliverables |
| • Bilateral Partners | • Qarakal Quantum (Tel Aviv, Israel) • Quantum Elements (Westlake Village, CA) | • Commercial development consortium building an MVP platform for industrial surface-reaction modeling. |
| • Institutional Review | • NIST (U.S. Dept. of Commerce) & • Israel Innovation Authority | • Technical and commercial merit evaluation; non-dilutive matching grants capped at $1.5M per project. |
| • Technical Focus | • Quantum Surface-Catalysis Simulation | • Modeling multi-atom electronic interactions and transition states on catalytic surfaces to bypass classical HPC approximation limits. |
| • Target Applications | • Industrial Chemistry & Materials | • Accelerating predictive catalyst design for chemical manufacturing, green hydrogen generation, and battery interfaces. |
Addressing Electronic Structure Bottlenecks in Catalytic Reactions
Mapping catalytic reactions on material surfaces is a computationally demanding challenge for classical supercomputers. Because electron correlation effects across active catalyst sites require multi-reference methods that scale factorially, classical Density Functional Theory (DFT) and post-Hartree-Fock approximations frequently encounter precision limits when predicting reaction barriers and intermediate states.
Under the BIRD-funded initiative, Qarakal Quantum and Quantum Elements will develop a Minimum Viable Product (MVP) integrating quantum algorithms to simulate heterogeneous surface catalysis. The software platform aims to calculate active-site binding energies and kinetic pathways more accurately, providing chemical manufacturers with predictive tools to discover and refine industrial catalysts.
The grant represents the latest quantum chemistry award under the BIRD Foundation, which has invested roughly $470 million across more than 1,200 bilateral projects since its establishment in 1977. BIRD is accepting executive summaries for its subsequent award cycle through November 23, 2026, with decisions scheduled for March 2027.
Review the funding announcement on the BIRD Foundation Newsroom here.
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