Quantum computing stocks are having their moment. Rigetti Computing and D-Wave have surged over 20% this week alone, with both companies more than doubling since January. The rally kicked into overdrive after Nvidia threw its weight behind quantum breakthroughs and major purchase orders started flowing in.
The quantum computing sector just had its breakout week. Rigetti Computing and D-Wave Quantum both exploded over 20% as investors suddenly woke up to what insiders have been quietly building. But this isn't just another meme stock rally - there's real money and real momentum behind the surge.
Rigetti dropped the news that sparked the frenzy: $5.7 million in purchase orders for two of its 9-qubit Novera quantum computing systems. That might not sound like iPhone revenue, but in quantum computing, every sale validates the entire sector. According to company filings, these aren't just lab experiments anymore - they're commercial deployments.
Meanwhile, D-Wave has been the year's quantum darling, tripling in value since January. Arqit Quantum went absolutely parabolic this week, rocketing 42% in just five trading days. The kind of moves that make day traders salivate and institutional investors start paying attention.
But it was Nvidia's endorsement that really sent shockwaves through the market. In a blog post earlier this week, the AI chip giant highlighted accelerated computing as the foundation that can make "quantum computing breakthroughs of today and tomorrow possible." When the company that's been printing money from AI suddenly pivots to quantum, smart money follows.
The European money is flowing too. Novo Holdings - the investment arm behind diabetes giant Novo Nordisk - just committed 300 million euros to what they're calling the world's largest dedicated quantum fund. The Danish government co-invested, signaling this isn't just venture capital speculation but strategic national interest.
The big tech land grab is already underway. Microsoft has been quietly building quantum infrastructure through Azure, while announced its first quantum computing chip earlier this year. has been running quantum experiments in Santa Barbara for years, and now everyone's scrambling to catch up.
