IonQ, Rigetti, and D-Wave Are Surging Again. Is Quantum Computing Finally Real?
News that the government is directly investing some CHIPS and Science Act funds in an array of quantum computing companies gave the sector a boost.
IonQ, Rigetti, and D-Wave Are Surging Again. Is Quantum Computing Finally Real?
Overview
After a rough stretch, quantum computing stocks are hot once again. Though they've retreated somewhat in the last week, shares of IonQ (NYSE: IONQ), Rigetti Computing (NASDAQ: RGTI), and D-Wave Quantum (NYSE: QBTS) have gained 50% or more from the end of March.
So, what's going on? And is now the time to buy?
Details
The computer or smartphone that you're likely reading this article on is a classical machine. Every piece of data that it stores and processes is held in binary bits, which can only have two states: 1 or 0. Quantum computers process information using qubits, which eventually land in one of those two states. But during the computational phase, qubits exist in a state of quantum superposition, in which their values are neither 1 nor 0, but probability amplitudes that can be positive or negative. This property allows them to perform calculations in a way that is entirely different from how traditional computers do, and could one day let these machines rapidly solve certain types of extremely complex problems that would take even today's best supercomputers thousands of years.
Source
Originally published at www.fool.com.
