A Silicon Valley-based quantum computing company, D-Wave Quantum, is relocating its headquarters to Boca Raton, Florida. The move is part of an ongoing effort by local leaders in Palm Beach County to establish the region as a center for technology firms.
D-Wave Quantum, which was founded in 1999 and became publicly traded in 2022, currently operates out of Palo Alto, California. According to announcements from both the company and the owners of its new site, D-Wave will set up its headquarters and a research and development facility at the Boca Raton Innovation Campus (BRiC) before the end of the year. The company has leased approximately 25,000 square feet for its operations.
Alan Baratz serves as CEO of D-Wave. The company specializes in dual-platform quantum computing.
In addition to its relocation, D-Wave signed a $20 million agreement with Florida Atlantic University (FAU). Under this deal, FAU will acquire an Advantage2 annealing quantum computer that will be installed at the university’s Boca Raton campus. Following this announcement on Tuesday, shares of D-Wave rose by 1.6 percent according to Investor’s Business Daily.
Also on Tuesday, D-Wave revealed it would collaborate with Davidson Technologies and Anduril Industries—both defense technology companies—to develop quantum applications intended for U.S. air and missile defense systems.
The BRiC property is owned by CP Group, based in Boca Raton, and New York-based DRA Advisors. The campus spans 1.7 million square feet at 5000 T-Rex Avenue and was originally developed by IBM during the 1960s as a research hub. In 2021, DRA Advisors acquired a stake in BRiC for $320.2 million; David Luski leads DRA Advisors while Angelo Bianco and Chris Eachus head CP Group. Recently, both firms completed $100 million worth of capital improvements at the site.
D-Wave’s decision to relocate from Silicon Valley contributes to South Florida’s efforts to build its tech industry and increase demand for office space—a trend that gained momentum during the pandemic when several technology companies expanded into the region following business reopenings and major events such as the 2020 bitcoin conference.
Despite early enthusiasm around areas like Miami’s Wynwood district attracting tech firms, data indicate that this influx did not lead to significant increases in office leasing across South Florida. Over recent years, some companies have returned to Silicon Valley due to its strong artificial intelligence ecosystem.
Recently there has been renewed interest in developing Palm Beach County—particularly West Palm Beach—as a tech hub. This initiative is led by billionaire Steve Ross and other executives at Related Ross, a real estate firm founded by Ross in 2024. At Related Ross’ under-construction building at 10 City Place in downtown West Palm Beach, Fortune 500 cloud computing company ServiceNow pre-leased nearly 212,000 square feet last year—the largest office lease recorded in South Florida for that period.
Additionally, Vanderbilt University plans to begin work soon on a $520 million campus focused on business and technology graduate programs in West Palm Beach. Steve Ross played a key role in securing Vanderbilt’s presence by pledging $50 million toward the project and organizing fundraising efforts.
