IonQ to Acquire Zero Trust Security Firm Elisity in Deal Worth Up to $1.3 Billion

IonQ announced on October 12, 2026 that it has agreed to acquire Elisity, a Zero Trust security company, in an all-stock transaction valued at up to $1.3 billion.

Deal terms

• Structure: Stock only, including up to $150 million in earnout payments tied to Elisity's performance
• Share count: Set at closing using the 20-trading-day volume-weighted average price of IonQ stock, bounded between $33.07 and $49.61 per share
• Closing: Expected in the fourth quarter of 2026, subject to customary conditions including required regulatory approval
• Leadership: Elisity will continue to operate under its current management, including CEO James Winebrenner

IonQ's filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission describes the merger agreement as signed on October 9.

Strategic rationale

IonQ said it plans to combine its post-quantum cryptography and quantum key distribution technology with Elisity's Zero Trust platform, which focuses on microsegmentation, the practice of limiting which devices and users can communicate inside a network. The company estimates that market at more than $10 billion.

The deal also gives IonQ access to Elisity's enterprise customer base and recurring revenue, and a wider set of channels for selling post-quantum security, key distribution and quantum computing products to enterprise and government customers.

IonQ Chairman and CEO Niccolo de Masi said that "Q-Day is coming much faster than predicted," referring to the point at which quantum computers could break widely used encryption. Winebrenner said customers need to prioritize post-quantum cryptography while securing existing assets.

Context

IonQ has expanded through acquisitions before; in 2025 it agreed to buy UK-based Oxford Ionics in a deal valued at about $1.08 billion. Elisity's deal remains pending, and the final number of shares IonQ issues will depend on its stock price in the weeks before closing.