So, you’re telling me that a handful of companies with revenues that wouldn’t even cover the catering budget for a Hollywood blockbuster are now worth billions of dollars? Give me a break. The quantum computing stock frenzy is the most perfect, most beautiful, most terrifying bubble I’ve seen since the dot-com era. And I was there for that one, watching pets.com burn to the ground.
This time, the fuel isn't dog food sold online; it's the esoteric, almost mystical promise of quantum mechanics. Stocks like IonQ, Rigetti, and D-Wave are soaring on a cocktail of hype, government contracts, and JPMorgan throwing around money like it's trying to put out a fire. We’re talking about stock jumps of 17%, 21%, 25% in a single day. IONQ, QBTS, RGTI: Here’s Why Quantum Computing Stocks Are Soaring Today. Why? Because IonQ figured out a new way to simulate molecules and Jamie Dimon decided quantum is critical for "national security."
National security. That’s the magic phrase, isn't it? Slap that label on anything and suddenly, burning through hundreds of millions of dollars with almost nothing to show for it becomes patriotic. It’s a genius move. But what are investors actually buying? Are they buying a revolutionary technology, or are they just buying a lottery ticket with a flag pin on it?
The Numbers Are a Joke, and Nobody's Laughing
Let’s get down to the brass tacks, because the numbers here are just comical. Rigetti reported Q2 2025 revenue of a whopping $1.8 million. That’s it. In the same quarter, it posted a net loss of nearly $40 million. Meanwhile, it’s sitting on a pile of cash worth $572 million. D-Wave is slightly better, with $3.1 million in revenue against a net loss of $167 million (mostly accounting nonsense, but still) and a war chest of $819 million. Quantum Rivals Clash: D-Wave vs Rigetti – Which Stock Will Skyrocket in 2026?
This is insane. No, 'insane' doesn't cover it—this is a collective, willing suspension of disbelief on a scale I haven't seen in years. These companies are trading at price-to-sales ratios in the thousands. It’s like paying a million dollars for a single brick because someone promised you it’ll be part of a castle someday. Maybe. If they can figure out how to make mortar.
All this cash comes from equity offerings, basically printing new shares and selling them to a market high on hopium. IonQ just got a $2 billion investment from a single firm. Two. Billion. Dollars. For what? To build a "cryptographically relevant quantum computer" by 2028. That’s the carrot on the stick. They’re selling the future, four years at a time, and Wall Street is gobbling it up. But what happens if 2028 rolls around and all they have is a slightly faster molecule simulator? Who gets left holding the bag then?
"Milestones" and Other Corporate Fantasies
Every time one of these companies needs to justify its existence, it drops a press release about a new "milestone." IonQ achieved a "quantum chemistry breakthrough." Rigetti unveiled its "36-qubit multi-chip quantum computer." D-Wave launched its "Advantage2" system. It all sounds terribly impressive, doesn't it? You can almost hear the low, electric hum of the future being built in some freezing-cold, sterile lab.
But let's translate this from PR-speak into English. A "breakthrough" means they ran a successful experiment in a lab. A "new system" is a new piece of hardware that, for now, is mostly useful to other researchers trying to figure out what the hell to do with it. Rigetti's CEO, Subodh Kulkarni, celebrated "increased demand for on-premises quantum computing systems" after booking $5.7 million in orders for two machines.
Two. Machines. This is the "increased demand." The hype is, offcourse, fueled by big names that lend it all an air of legitimacy. It's not just JPMorgan; it's collaborations with automotive manufacturers, NASA's JPL, and a whole host of universities. But these aren't customers in the traditional sense. They're research partners. They're buying a very, very expensive science fair project to see if they can... well, to see what they can do. And while they figure that out, the VCs and early investors are cashing out. I've been covering tech long enough to know that when the suits start talking about "synergies" and "strategic initiatives," it's usually because there's no actual product to sell yet. It ain't different here.
The entire quantum sector feels like it’s running on fumes—the fumes of future potential. Every announcement, every partnership is just another puff of smoke to keep the balloon inflated. But what is this thing, really? It’s a technology that might, one day, change everything from medicine to finance. Or it might hit a wall and remain a niche academic tool for another twenty years. Nobody knows. And anyone who tells you they do is either a liar or a fool.
So We're Just Gambling Now?
Let's be brutally honest with ourselves. Buying these stocks right now isn't investing. It's not even speculation. It's gambling. You're betting on a scientific breakthrough that hasn't happened yet, on a commercial market that doesn't exist, and on a timeline that is, at best, a wild guess. The fundamentals are a fantasy. The revenues are pocket change. The losses are staggering. The only thing that's real is the hype, and hype has a nasty habit of evaporating the second it hits the cold, hard wall of reality. Maybe these companies really will build the future. Or maybe they're just building the most expensive lottery tickets in history.