Rigetti Computing Stock Skyrockets: Here’s Why Investors Are FOMOing In

Quantum moonshot or just another hype train? Rigetti Computing's stock is tearing up the charts today—here's what's fueling the frenzy.

The Quantum Catalyst

Wall Street's buzzing after Rigetti dropped a hardware breakthrough that could shave years off its timeline. No vague 'partnerships' here—just a cold, hard specs sheet that made shorts scramble.

Institutions Piling In

Three hedge funds just tripled down on positions. Either they know something we don't, or they're desperate to catch the next NVDA. (Spoiler: Their track records suggest the latter.)

The Cynic's Corner

Let's be real—this smells like classic 'buy the rumor' action. Remember when every quantum play promised commercial viability by 2023? Pepperidge Farm remembers.

Microsoft sees quantum computing in its future

Microsoft's recent earnings -- which showed strong growth and an incredible increase in the company's artificial intelligence (AI) capital expenditures -- included a nod to its efforts in quantum computing. During the company's call, CEO Satya Nadella spoke of the technology as an exciting opportunity in the future, adding that it had a technological breakthrough in partnership with ATOM Computing.

Image source: Getty Images.

Nadella was optimistic, saying:

The next big accelerator in the cloud will be quantum, and I'm excited about our progress. In fact, earlier this month, we announced the world's first operational deployment of a Level Two quantum computer in partnership with Atom Computing. This is how we will continue to think and make investments with decade-long arcs while making progress every quarter.

Investors should keep an eye on timelines

While this is positive news, the details were fairly light, and his "decade-long arcs" comment should make investors pause. I think that we are many, many years, if not decades, away from viable quantum computing, yet Rigetti and other quantum computing companies are reaching multibillion-dollar valuations already. I think there is a disconnect here, and investors should be realistic about the possibility that this technology is a long way from maturity and commercial viability.