Quantum Bleed: Rigetti Computing Stock Crashes 40% on Revenue Warning

Another quantum promise evaporates into shareholder losses.

Rigetti Computing just quantum-tunneled through investor confidence—plummeting over 40% in premarket trading after slashing revenue guidance. The quantum computing pioneer now projects 2025 revenue will miss previous estimates by a staggering 35%.

Hardware Delays Bite

Production setbacks on next-generation chips forced the downward revision. Their 84-qubit processor—once touted as a sector leapfrog—faces mounting technical hurdles and delayed commercial availability.

Cash Burn Accelerates

Operating costs continue outpacing revenue by 4:1 despite layoffs last quarter. The company now forecasts needing another capital raise by Q2 2026—potentially diluting existing holders.

Another 'moonshot' proving that in quantum computing, the only thing collapsing faster than qubits are stock valuations.

Rigetti Computing stock drops on weak Q2 and macro jitters

Last week, Rigetti released its Q2 report, revealing that its sales and earnings were down significantly year over year. The company's $1.8 million in revenue was nearly 42% less than last year in the same period, and its net income dropped nearly 220% as the company lost nearly $40 million in the quarter.

While the loss was exacerbated by some one-off accounting charges, the performance still showed how far the company is from justifying its current market cap of nearly $5 billion.

Image source: Getty Images.

Adding to the pain, recent economic data is putting pressure on riskier stocks like Rigetti. The latest jobs report shows the economy may be slowing, while at the same time, inflation numbers came in higher than expected.

Investors should be cautious

The company did share some promising operational updates and leaps in its technological development in its earnings release, but I believe we are likely many, many years, if not decades, away from viable quantum computing. Despite this, Rigetti and other quantum computing companies are reaching multibillion-dollar valuations already. I think there is a major disconnect here, and quantum investors may get burned if the economy does really take a dive.