Berkeley, Calif., Feb. 3 10, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Rigetti Holdings, Inc. (“Rigetti Computing”), a pioneer in full quantum computing, today announced that it has elected retired Marine General Peter Pace as Chairman of the Board. . General Pace, who has served on Rigetti’s Board of Directors (the “Board of Directors”) since June 2017, brings extensive leadership expertise gained from his long military career and previous experience on the Board of Directors. administration of several private and public companies. .
“General Pace has made a tremendous contribution to Rigetti during his tenure on our Board of Directors. His extensive national security leadership track record, coupled with the time he spent advising organizations in the areas of management consulting, private equity and cybersecurity, will be invaluable as we continue to be pioneers in the commercialization of quantum computing and working to unlock the potential of this technology for the private and public sector,” said Chad Rigetti, Founder and CEO of Rigetti Computing.
“I have enjoyed serving on Rigetti Computing’s Board of Directors, and I am honored to be named Chairman. The broad impact of quantum computing, from national security to finance and beyond, is moving from theory to real-world applications, and Rigetti is leading the way in advancing the industry. I am thrilled to help lead as Rigetti begins the next chapter,” General Pace said.
General Pace served as the 16th Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff from 2005 to 2007, the first Marine to hold the position. As president, he served as the primary military adviser to the President of the United States, the Secretary of Defense, the National Security Council, and the Homeland Security Council. He received the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2008.
Rigetti announced in October 2021 that it had reached an agreement and planned to merge with Supernova Partners Acquisition Company II, Ltd. (NYSE: SNII) (“Supernova”), a publicly traded special purpose acquisition company. The proposed business combination is subject to Supernova shareholder approval and other closing conditions. Following completion of the proposed business combination, the combined company will be named Rigetti Computing, Inc. and its common stock is expected to trade on NASDAQ under the symbol “RGTI”. General Pace is expected to be named Chairman of the Board of Rigetti Computing, Inc.
About Rigetti Computing
Rigetti Computing is a pioneer in full-stack quantum computing. The company has been operating quantum computing in the cloud since 2017 and serves global enterprises, governments and research customers through its Rigetti Quantum Cloud Services platform. The company’s proprietary quantum classical infrastructure provides ultra-low latency integration with public and private clouds for practical high-performance quantum computing. Rigetti has developed the industry’s first multi-chip quantum processor for scalable quantum computing systems. The company designs and manufactures its chips in-house at Fab-1, the industry’s first dedicated and integrated quantum device manufacturing facility. Rigetti was founded in 2013 by Chad Rigetti and today employs over 140 people with offices in the US, UK and Australia. Learn more at www.rigetti.com.
About Supernova
Supernova is led by Michael Clifton, who was most recently a technology investor at The Carlyle Group; Robert Reid, longtime senior partner at Blackstone; Spencer Rascoff, a serial entrepreneur who co-founded Hotwire, Zillow, dot.LA and Pacaso and led Zillow as CEO for nearly a decade; and Alexander Klabin, founder and CEO of Ancient and former managing partner, co-CIO and co-founder of Senator Investment Group.
Additional information and where to find it
Supernova has filed a registration statement on Form S-4 (as amended, “Form S-4”) with the Securities Exchange Commission (the “SEC”), which includes a proxy statement/prospectus, which will be both the proxy statement to be distributed to holders of Supernova common stock in connection with its solicitation of proxies for the vote of Supernova shareholders regarding the proposed business combination and other matters that may be described in the registration statement, as well as the prospectus relating to the offer and sale of the securities to be issued within the framework of the business combination. Once the registration statement is declared effective, Supernova will mail a definitive proxy statement/prospectus and other relevant materials to its shareholders. This communication does not contain all of the information to be considered regarding the proposed business combination and is not intended to form the basis of an investment decision or any other decision relating to the business combination. Supernova shareholders and other interested persons are advised to read, when available, the proxy statement/preliminary prospectus included in the registration statement and its amendments, together with the proxy statement/ final prospectus and other documents filed in connection with the proposed business combination, as these documents will contain important information about Rigetti, Supernova and the business combination. When available, the definitive proxy statement/prospectus and other documents relevant to the proposed business combination will be mailed to Supernova shareholders on a record date to be determined to vote on the business combination. proposed companies. Shareholders will also be able to obtain copies of the preliminary proxy statement, the definitive proxy statement and other documents filed with the SEC, free of charge, once available, on the SEC’s website at at www.sec.gov, or by directing a request to Supernova’s secretary at 4301 50th Street NW, Suite 300 PMB 1044, Washington, DC 20016, (202) 918-7050.
Participants in the solicitation
Supernova and its directors and officers may be considered participants in the solicitation of proxies from shareholders of Supernova regarding the proposed business combination. A list of the names of such directors and officers and a description of their interests in Supernova are contained in Supernova’s prospectus dated March 3, 2021 relating to its initial public offering, which has been filed with the SEC and is available free of charge at the Website. of the SEC at www.sec.gov. To the extent such holdings of Supernova securities may have changed since then, such changes have been or will be reflected in the change of ownership statements on Form 4 filed with the SEC. Additional information regarding the interests of such participants will be contained in the proxy statement/prospectus for the proposed business combination when it becomes available.
Rigetti and its directors and officers may also be considered participants in the solicitation of proxies from shareholders of Supernova in connection with the proposed business combination. A list of the names of such directors and officers and information regarding their interests in the proposed business combination will be included in the proxy statement/prospectus for the proposed business combination when available.
No offer or solicitation
This communication does not constitute (i) a solicitation of a proxy, consent or authorization with respect to securities or with respect to the proposed business combination or (ii) an offer to sell, a solicitation of an offer to purchase or a recommendation to purchase any securities of Supernova, Rigetti or any of their respective affiliates.
Forward-looking statements
Certain statements contained in this communication may be deemed to be forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements generally relate to future events and can be identified by words such as “pro forma”, “may”, “should”, “could”, “could”, “plan”, “possible”, “plan”. “, “strive”, “budget”, “plan”, “expect”, “intend”, “will”, “estimate”, “anticipate”, “believe”, “predict” , “potential” or “continue”, or the negatives of these terms or their variants or similar terminology. These forward-looking statements are subject to risks, uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are based on estimates and assumptions that, while believed to be reasonable by Supernova and its management, and Rigetti and its management, as applicable, are inherently uncertain. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from current expectations include, but are not limited to: the outcome of any legal proceedings that may be brought against Supernova, Rigetti, the combined company or others at following the announcement of the business combination and any final decision relating thereto; the inability to complete the proposed business combination due to the inability to obtain Supernova shareholder approval or satisfy other closing conditions; changes to the proposed structure of the business combination that may be required or appropriate as a result of applicable laws or regulations or as a condition of obtaining regulatory approval for the business combination; the ability to meet stock exchange listing standards after completion of the business combination; the risk that the proposed business combination will disrupt Rigetti’s current plans and operations following the announcement and completion of the proposed business combination; the ability to recognize the expected benefits of the business combination, which may be affected by, among other things, competition, the ability of the combined business to expand and manage growth profitably, to maintain relationships with customers and suppliers and to retain its management and key employees; costs related to the business combination; changes in applicable laws or regulations; the possibility that Rigetti or the combined company may be adversely affected by other economic, business or competitive factors; Rigetti’s expense and profitability estimates; changes in the markets in which Rigetti competes; Rigetti’s ability to execute its technology roadmap; Rigetti’s ability to execute its strategic initiatives, expansion plans and continue to innovate its existing services; the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on Rigetti’s business; and other risks and uncertainties set forth in the section titled “Risk Factors” and “Caution Regarding Forward-Looking Statements” in the filing on Form S-4 and proxy statement/prospectus discussed above and d other documents filed with Supernova from time to time with the SEC.
Nothing in this communication should be taken as a representation by anyone that the forward-looking statements set forth herein will be realized or that any of the results contemplated by such forward-looking statements will be achieved. You should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date they are made. Neither Supernova nor Rigetti undertakes to update these forward-looking statements.