Rigetti Computing (Nasdaq: RGTI) has restructured its operations to keep up with orders for its on-premises quantum computers, standing up a dedicated Systems Delivery organization and appointing new operational and technology leaders effective August 18. The Berkeley, California company said the shift lets its engineering team stay focused on the multi-generation processor roadmap while a separate group owns manufacturing, installation and customer success for its 9-qubit Novera and 108-qubit Cepheus-class systems.
New COO And CTO Rebalance Rigetti's Org Chart
David Rivas, Rigetti's Chief Technology Officer since February 2023, has been elevated to Chief Operating Officer, a newly created role that consolidates fabrication operations, systems delivery, software engineering, applications, business development, government programs, supply chain and facilities under a single executive. Andrew Bestwick, Ph.D., previously Senior Vice President of Quantum Systems and the architect of Rigetti's chiplet-based Cepheus platform, has been promoted to Chief Technology Officer, taking charge of quantum processor design, chip fabrication development and hardware engineering.
Both executives report to Rigetti President and CEO Dr. Subodh Kulkarni, who framed the move as a way to bring "clear, end-to-end accountability" to system deployment without diluting engineering focus. The technology organization remains the company's largest engineering unit and continues to chase a stated performance target of 99.5% median two-qubit gate fidelity on Cepheus-1-108Q.
Scaling Novera And Cepheus Deployments
Rigetti has seen accelerating demand for on-site quantum systems, ranging from the 9-qubit Novera QPU that plugs into existing cryogenic and control stacks at national labs and research centers, all the way up to Cepheus-1-108Q, the industry's largest multi-chip superconducting quantum computer, deployed in 2026 by tiling twelve 9-qubit chiplets. The company was previously routing installation and long-term customer support through its engineering organization, an approach it says no longer scales as more institutions bring quantum hardware in-house.
Complementing A Growing Deployment Roster
The new operating structure follows a busy stretch for Rigetti. In late July the company expanded its collaboration with HPE and the Pittsburgh Supercomputing Center to build a hybrid quantum-classical TangleLab testbed anchored by a Novera system, and Rigetti-linked processors continue to power research at IBM, university and DOE sites. In parallel, other superconducting vendors are moving toward customer deployments too, as shown by IBM's modular cryogenic milestone on the path to Starling and Yonsei becoming the second IBM Nighthawk site.
Rivas joined Rigetti in March 2019 as SVP of Systems and Services and previously held executive roles at Sun Microsystems, Nokia, Bolt Threads and Stage 3 Systems. Bestwick joined in August 2015, has led work spanning chip fabrication, circuit design and cryogenic RF hardware, and holds a Ph.D. in physics from Stanford. With commercial fleet build-out and processor performance now under separate but connected leaders, Rigetti is betting the split will help it defend its lead in on-premises superconducting systems as competitors ramp their own multi-chip roadmaps.
Reporting based on coverage from Rigetti Computing, GlobeNewswire, The Quantum Insider and HPCwire.