It’s been a strong week for quantum stocks.
Shares of Rigetti Computing (RGTI) powered over 4% higher in premarket trading on Friday, building on an 18% spike on Thursday. Meanwhile, D-Wave Quantum (QBTS) also added 4% premarket to Thursday’s 13% gain. And Quantum Computing (QUBT) stock rose 12% over the past two days.
All three stocks were among the top trending tickers on Yahoo Finance.
Driving the stocks higher was Rigetti’s announcement that it sold two 9-qubit Novera quantum computing systems for $5.7 million on Tuesday. One system was bought by an Asian technology manufacturing company, Rigetti said, while the other was purchased by a California-based applied physics and artificial intelligence startup.
D-Wave also announced this week that it was testing its technology with the North Wales Police Department “to optimize placement of police vehicles for emergency response.”
Wall Street analysts see enormous potential in quantum stocks, but the underlying technology is still considered in the developmental phase, which is why they’re seen as riskier plays. While quantum computing can solve complex tasks, making them useful in certain fields, the systems are prone to errors.
And as neither company is profitable, valuations remain another concern. Despite a rocky start to the year, Rigetti and D-Wave, the two leaders in the space, have climbed 132% and 247%, respectively, year to date.