QuantrolOx, a University of Oxford spinout that makes control software for quantum computers, has raised a €12m Series A led by IW Capital. The European Innovation Council (EIC) Fund and Transpose Capital also invested.
QuantrolOx began in Oxford and now operates as an Anglo-Finnish business headquartered in Finland. It builds software that automates the tuning and control of quantum computers and is designed to work across different hardware architectures.
The company argues that tuning is one of the industry's main bottlenecks. Many qubit systems are still calibrated by hand by specialist physicists, which makes it slow and expensive to scale machines.
The deal
IW Capital, the London-based early-stage investor best known for its EIS-backed growth funds, led the round. The EIC Fund, the equity arm of the European Union's innovation programme, invested alongside Transpose Capital.
They join an existing shareholder base that includes London venture firm Hoxton Ventures and Arm co-founder Hermann Hauser, one of the best-known names in British deep-tech investing.
Terms beyond the headline figure were not disclosed, including the pre- and post-money valuation and how much equity the new investors hold. Most of the cap table is now split between UK private capital (IW Capital, Hoxton, Hauser) and EU public money (the EIC Fund). That mix is increasingly common among Oxford and Cambridge spinouts with operations on the Continent.
Founders and technology
The company has four co-founders. Chief executive Vishal Chatrath is a former Nokia executive. Professor Andrew Briggs is emeritus professor of nanomaterials at Oxford. Dr Natalia Ares is an Oxford research fellow and serial deep-tech entrepreneur. Chief product officer Dominic Lennon helped develop the platform after completing his DPhil at Oxford.
QuantrolOx points to published research in which its machine-learning system tuned quantum devices in under 70 minutes, faster than the best human benchmark.
"QuantrolOx is building the foundations of the quantum industry," Chatrath said. "Our tools industrialise quantum hardware and train the people to run it."
Use of funds
The money will go towards commercial growth and an expansion into the US, where most quantum hardware spending is concentrated.
Context
The round adds to a busy month for UK-linked quantum companies. Universal Quantum recently announced a $100m Series A co-led by DCVC and Firgun Ventures, and Bristol's Siloton has secured an £8.4m Innovate UK contract.
QuantrolOx sells software rather than hardware, so it is betting that whichever qubit technology wins, every machine will need automated tuning and control. That approach needs less capital than building quantum computers, which helps explain why a €12m Series A goes further than the nine-figure rounds now common among hardware makers.
Original source: Tech.eu — https://tech.eu/2026/10/22/anglo-finnish-oxford-university-quantum-spinout-raises-eur12m/
