QBTS, INFQ, RGTI Stocks Explode: Quantum Rally Adds Nearly $5B In Market Cap On Trump Admin’s Major Bet — But Retail Is Very Divided

• Over the past year, Trump has repeatedly stressed the importance of quantum computing, arguing that the U.S. should establish an early lead over China.
• Thursday’s development sparked widespread optimism for the industry.
• However, some traders argued the gains might not hold due to the weak fundamentals of the companies in question, the early-stage nature of quantum computing, and high short interest.

Shares of Rigetti Computing (RGTI), D-Wave Quantum (QBTS), and Infleqtion (INFQ) surged more than 30% on Thursday — adding nearly $4.9 billion in combined market value in a single session — and climbed another 7% in overnight trading after the Trump administration announced $100 million grants for each company as part of a broader $2 billion package aimed at boosting the U.S. quantum computing industry.

Shares of IonQ, another leading player that was left off the initial award list, rose 12%, apparently because the government said it “continues to solicit proposals from eligible applicants.”

Over the past year, Trump has repeatedly stressed the importance of quantum computing, a fast-emerging deep-tech industry where he believes the U.S. should establish an early lead over China. Even broad or speculative pro-quantum comments from Trump or other officials have often sparked outsized rallies in quantum stocks, and the sector remains heavily driven by sentiment and expectations of future government funding and commercialization.

On Thursday, RGTI had its best single-day gains in over a year, while QBTS’ gains were the best since last May, and INFQ had its best day on record.

Retail View Turns Bullish, Some Worry About Durability Of Gains

The development sparked widespread enthusiasm for RGTI, QBTS and INFQ among retail investors on Stocktwits, with sentiment turning “extremely bullish” on all three. Still, pockets of skepticism remained. 

Some traders argued the surge in valuations was disproportionate to the size of the grants, while the usual risks tied to the companies’ early-stage development, unproven commercial viability and elevated short interest — particularly in Rigetti Computing and D-Wave Quantum — remained in place.

The debate centered on whether the gains would sustain or fizzle out, with some traders opportunistically booking profits into the rally.

“Receives 100M from Socialist Captialism and stonk price adds 2310M market cap. Can someone explain!?” said a trader. 

Another wrote: “$RGTI imagine making 4 million in revenue as a loss making company with failing R&D milestones and youre up 40% in a day. you've just added 3 billion in market cap in a week. feeling pretty good, huh?”

“$QBTS Great news for sure, but the stock will tank heavily again in the coming weeks. The fundamentals were absurdly poor and don't justify such a valuation by any stretch of the imagination,” a trader posted on the D-Wave stream.
 

Trump’s Boost Amid Speculation On Personal Gains

Still, traders appeared to view government involvement or backing as a net positive for stocks, as seen in Intel’s case, where the government took a 10% stake last August. Intel stock has climbed about 600% since then. Meanwhile, last week’s disclosure that Trump personally held stakes in an array of tech companies boosted shares of at least the mid-sized players, like ServiceNow.

Traders speculated that Trump or his family could have involvement in the companies named in the latest award. “QBTS Won’t be surprised to see in a few months that Trump’s family had already put in millions of dollars in quantum names and obviously he had no knowledge of this !” said a trader. 

“Defenders will say quantum computing is strategically important and that cutting-edge technology is capital-intensive. That may be true, but neither point justifies the administration’s venture capitalist cosplay,” Tad DeHaven, a political analyst at Cato Institute, said in his commentary.

“Today’s quantum deals are the latest installment in an improvised project to convert federal power into presidential leverage over private enterprise. It’s antithetical to American capitalism, which, like it or not, is the driver of American prosperity.

Rigetti, D-Wave, Infleqtion Focus Areas In Quantum Market

Rigetti Computing develops quantum computers for general-purpose computing and already sells cloud-based quantum services, though the technology remains in its early stages. D-Wave focuses on quantum annealing systems for optimization tasks such as logistics and scheduling, making it the most commercially deployed of the three, with paying customers already using its systems. 

Infleqtion, formerly ColdQuanta, specializes in quantum sensing, atomic clocks, and cold-atom quantum technologies, with much of its business tied to government contracts and several products still in advanced R&D or early commercialization.
 

Notably, about 15.2% of Rigetti shares and 14.1% of D-Wave shares are currently sold short — both near all-time highs, according to Koyfin. Short interest in Infleqtion stood at 1.9%.

Rigetti stock was flat year-to-date, while D-Wave shares were down 1.6%. Infleqtion shares have gained over 30% since the company’s initial public offering last February.

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