Interlune Wins $1.25M AFWERX Contract for Helium-3 Extraction
Space startup Interlune has been awarded a $1.25 million SBIR Direct-to-Phase II contract by AFWERX to develop advanced technology for extracting helium-3 from U.S. helium sources, aiming to strengthen the national supply of this crucial isotope. Helium-3 is vital for cooling superconducting quantum computers to the extremely low temperatures they require.
Interlune will start work on August 26, 2025, with the goal of delivering advanced solutions that support America’s national defense. In particular, the Air Force uses helium-3 in its research on superconducting quantum computers, managed by the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) Information Directorate. “Helium-3 contributes significantly to global safety,” said Rob Meyerson, Interlune’s co-founder and CEO. “We’re honored to advance government and public interests by supplying this essential isotope efficiently.”
Currently, the United States produces only about one kilogram of helium-3 per year. Efforts to find alternative sources have been ongoing since around 2010, due to well-known shortages. Interlune’s new method is expected to double the nation’s annual output without increasing tritium production, which is traditionally used to make helium-3 but decays over twelve years.
While current terrestrial reserves can meet short-term demand, the growth of quantum computing will soon require much more helium-3. Looking ahead, Interlune plans to use insights from this project to develop future tech capable of collecting large amounts of helium-3 from the Moon.
The new system will be installed at an existing U.S. helium liquefaction facility so that helium-3 can be extracted while returning purified helium to normal operations with minimal disruption.
In Phase II, the project will cover prototype development, demonstration of key components, and specification of necessary interfaces for later integration into industrial plants. Phase III will involve demonstrating the complete system operating at full scale.
As quantum computing expands beyond labs into commercial use, demand for helium-3 is rising quickly. Last September, Interlune announced an agreement with Bluefors, a company specializing in quantum refrigeration, for more than $300 million worth of helium-3, which currently sells for about $20 million per kilogram.
Besides its role in quantum computing, helium-3 is important for national security applications such as detecting dangerous materials and weapons at borders and ports. It also holds promise for clean fusion energy and advanced medical imaging in the future.