Quantum Infrastructure Moves In-Country: First High-Value TDF Deal for a 20 mK Dilution Refrigerator

On 24 September 2026 DRDO signed its first high-value deep-tech agreement under the Technology Development Fund - with start-up Zero mK India - for indigenous development of a 20 mK dilution refrigerator, the ultra-low-temperature infrastructure that quantum computing platforms cannot run without. It is the first high-value project under the Rs 500 crore TDF deep-tech corpus, and it targets a classic import-dependent chokepoint - though an agreement is not yet a working refrigerator.