”Further, claims 4 and 5 lack support as they appear to claim a desired result without providing details on how a qubit is operated at these temperatures, when cryogenic conditions are generally required,” IP Australia’s letter said.
None of the 16 claims satisfied the patent requirements for a novel or inventive step, with all 16 accepted as a patentable subject matter, according to the examination report.
Archer has until February 11, 2022 to overcome the patent body’s objections explained in the report.
Mr English said Archer didn’t disclose the ruling as there was no change to the patent’s status and the application had not lapsed, been refused, or expired.
Rocketing share price
On January 20 Archer announced its first patent approval in Japan. On February 22, eleven days after IP Australia’s decision, Archer announced a “key technological milestone in the development of its CQ quantum computing chip” and shares surged 50 per cent in a single trading session from 80¢ to $1.20.
On March 1, it announced a “Quantum tech portfolio patent progress update”, which referenced the progress of six patent applications in Japan, Korea, Australia, the US, China, and Hong Kong. No disclosure was made around IP Australia’s objections to its patent application. The shares fell 2 per cent to 95¢ on the day.
Archer has no product, but the patent applications are important to show to the market that the technology it owns has potential to be developed into a commercial product.
Mr English said it currently has seven full-time staff working on technology development with plans to expand. For the 12 months to June 30 staff costs totalled $1.8 million, with admin and corporate costs totalling $750,000. It had $6.2 million cash on hand at June 30, which it estimated as more than two years of available funding based on existing cash burn.
It currently has three directors including Mr English. On July 29 director Alice McCleary announced her intention to resign by its August 30 AGM. Ms McCleary held 2.7 million shares, according to Archer’s latest annual report.
After its 20-fold rise over the past two years, Archer boasts a $490 million valuation at $2.15 per share on Thursday.
(20min delay)