Are Quantum Computing Stocks RGTI, IONQ and QBTS Still Worth Buying in 2025?

Quantum computing stocks were some of the biggest stories in 2024. Quantum Computing (NASDAQ:QUBT) gained the most last year, rising over 1,700% as it had the added benefit of a supportive company name, but Rigetti Computing (NASDAQ:RGTI) also soared 1,450%.

Other names in the space such as D-Wave Quantum (NASDAQ:QBTS)  and IonQ (NASDAQ:IONQ) were up 850% and 237%, respectively.

This year has been a bit tougher on the quantum computing crowd, with stocks down between 25% and 65% from their peaks.

Everyone is in the red this year after Nvidia (NASDAQ:NVDA) CEO Jensen Huang first questioned the technology’s immediate viability and Meta Platforms‘ (NASDAQ:META) Mark Zuckerberg followed it up with a similar view.

The one-two punch sent quantum computing stocks careening lower, though they regained some of the lost ground.

Since their stocks are still elevated well above where they stood a year ago, does that mean investors should avoid them in 2025, even if they are sharply off their highs?

A quantum leap in understanding

But what is quantum computing, anyway? Where traditional computers break data into two-dimensional 1s and 0s, quantum computers use quantum bits, or qubits. They can be either 1s or 0s, but also both at the same time and any number of permutations in between, called superposition.

Qubits also possess “entanglement,” which is like superposition on steroids. They can actually communicate with one another and cooperate, thereby expanding their possibilities exponentially.

The problem is, quantum computers are very unstable. Due to their sensitivity to noise and errors, it can cause errors to accumulate and degrade the quality of computation. 

Encouraging developments

Change is coming, however. Alphabet‘s (NASDAQ:GOOG)(NASDAQ:GOOGL) Google, for example, announced its Willow quantum computing chip achieved a breakthrough in quantum error correction.  It reportedly reduces errors exponentially as more qubits are added to the system. 

This is a major milestone because error rates in quantum computers typically increase as the number of qubits rise. It means  quantum computation actually becomes more reliable the more qubits you add. That is an essential element for scaling up quantum computers to handle complex, real-world problems.

Moreover, Google claims the Willow chip can perform in less than five minutes a standard benchmark computation that would theoretically take the world’s fastest classical supercomputers 10 septillion years to complete. 

So are quantum computing stocks a buy?

While advances are being made, much of this is theoretical. Although it suggests quantum computing is much further along than many previously thought possible, applicability to real-world scenarios remain out of reach.

The technology is also still incredibly new and the industry is populated with small, underfunded, and unprofitable companies. It makes choosing a possible winner difficult and would be more akin to gambling than investing, at least amongst the more popular names in the space, like Rigetti, IonQ, and the others.

Key takeaway

If you want exposure to quantum computing, then investing in stocks like International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM), which recently opened a quantum data center in Germany to bring utility-scale quantum computing systems to its European customers, would be a better choice. Alphabet would also be a worthwhile investment.

Instead of going the pure-play route, buying a solid, profitable businesses with a quantum computing kicker is the better investment choice.

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