Quantum Computing: The Roller Coaster Ride of the Stock Markets

The world of technology has been eagerly watching the field of quantum computing since Google unveiled its quantum chip Willow on December 9, 2024. The introduction of such an advanced chip has sparked market interest and led to a surge in stock prices in this sector. However, on Thursday, December 19, 2024, the market community decided to take a breather, resulting in a setback for the previously spectacularly risen quantum stocks. This pullback led to significant declines in the stock prices of quantum computing companies. On this turbulent trading day, Rigetti Computing lost a substantial 30.12%, Quantum Corp recorded a decrease of 39.97%, Quantum Computing fell by 41.04%, and D-Wave Quantum dropped by 28.91%. Nevertheless, the companies have shown remarkable growth figures for the year so far, which remain noteworthy despite the setback. Experts suspect that yesterday's downturn was due to concerns over an overvaluation of the stocks. The influential short seller Citron Research warned of the risks of investing in quantum computing stocks, pointing out the low R&D spending by smaller companies in this area compared to tech giants like Google. Citron highlighted: "R&D spending is crucial in this sector. While IONQ and Rigetti Computing invested significant sums in research, Quantum Computing spent only $2 million – a striking mismatch for a company claiming to offer integrated high-performance quantum systems." These comments were heeded and led to a correction of quantum computing stocks by at least 30%. Despite their promising long-term future, the industry still represents an emerging market. The projected potentials seem to exceed the current real values, as the practical applications of quantum computers for commercial use are still unclear compared to artificial intelligence, which is already noticeably affecting our daily lives.