Cathie Wood's Ark Invest Just Delivered Bad News for Quantum Computing Stock Rigetti Computing
The Motley Fool·2026-02-18 02:05

Core Insights - Investors have shown significant interest in quantum computing stocks, but many are experiencing sharp declines in 2025 [1] - Quantum computing has the potential to outperform classical computing in processing workloads, particularly in fields like science and cryptography [2] - Ark Investment Management suggests that the commercialization of quantum computing may be further away than anticipated by investors [3] Company Overview: Rigetti Computing - Rigetti Computing is a leader in the quantum industry, owning its fabrication facility and developing its own programming language, Quil [5] - The company has created a cloud computing platform to rent quantum computing capacity, allowing for faster updates to its systems [5] - Rigetti has built the largest multichip quantum computer, Cepheus-1-36Q, achieving a fidelity of 99.5% [6] Technical Aspects of Quantum Computing - Quantum computers utilize qubits, which can represent both 0 and 1 simultaneously, enabling rapid simulations from large datasets [7] - A fidelity of 99.5% means an error occurs once every 200 operations, which is still too high for many applications [8] - Rigetti plans to launch a new 150-qubit quantum computer with 99.7% fidelity by the end of 2026, followed by a 1,000-qubit system with 99.8% fidelity in 2027 [9] Market Position and Financials - Rigetti generated $5.2 million in revenue during the first three quarters of 2025, which is minimal for a company valued at $5 billion [8] - The current market cap of Rigetti is approximately $5.3 billion, with a price-to-sales (P/S) ratio of 617, making it one of the most expensive tech stocks [10][16] - Despite a 71% decline from its peak, Rigetti has a three-year return of 1,550% [15] Competitive Landscape - Alphabet, the parent company of Google, is also developing quantum systems and has significantly more resources than Rigetti [10] - According to Ark's research, Alphabet's quantum computers are expected to double qubits and reduce error rates by 40% every four years, delaying the ability to crack the RSA-2048 encryption until 2063 [11] - Ark believes quantum computers could be useful for cryptographic decryption by 2044 if advancements in qubit doubling and error rate reduction are accelerated [13] Valuation Concerns - Rigetti's high valuation is considered unsustainable given its current revenue levels and the long timeline for achieving commercially viable quantum computing [15][18] - The industry faces significant challenges in scaling quantum systems, which may hinder Rigetti's ability to maintain its growth trajectory [14]

Cathie Wood's Ark Invest Just Delivered Bad News for Quantum Computing Stock Rigetti Computing - Reportify