The leading quantum computing companies, IonQ, Rigetti, and D-Wave, have released their financial results for the third quarter of 2024. While all three firms continue to report losses, they reflect a developing market still striving to achieve supremacy over classical supercomputers. Here’s a breakdown of their performances.
IonQ: Revenue Doubled but Losses Increased
IonQ reported revenues of $12.4 million in the third quarter, a 102% increase from $6.1 million recorded in the same period last year. However, the company’s net losses also grew, reaching $52.5 million, compared to $44.8 million in the third quarter of 2023. Adjusted EBITDA losses increased slightly from $22.4 million to $23.7 million.
During this quarter, IonQ secured new contracts worth a total of $63.5 million, solidifying its position as a leader in the quantum computing sector.
D-Wave: Declining Revenue Despite Service Advances
D-Wave experienced a 27% drop in revenue, which fell to $1.9 million in the third quarter of 2024, down from $2.6 million in the same period of 2023. Net losses increased significantly, rising from $16.1 million to $22.7 million, a 41% year-over-year increase.
Nonetheless, revenue from its business model Quantum Computing as a Service (QCaaS) grew by 41%, reaching $1.6 million. Additionally, the company highlighted key financial advancements, such as the full repayment of a $50 million loan and the availability of nearly $30 million in cash.
D-Wave’s CEO, Alan Baratz, emphasized during the earnings call the importance of enhancing access controls to their cloud platform to prevent potential security breaches and clarified that the company does not market its systems in China.
Rigetti: Ambitious Plans with Declining Revenue and Losses
Rigetti reported revenues of $2.4 million, slightly down from $3.1 million in the third quarter of 2023. However, the company’s net losses decreased dramatically, falling from $22.2 million to $14.8 million.
Rigetti’s CEO, Subodh Kulkarni, announced plans to launch a modular 36-qubit system in 2025, based on 49-qubit chips with a target fidelity of 99.5% for two-qubit gates. This system, which will employ a multi-chip quantum processor architecture, will be one of the industry’s most ambitious milestones.
Rigetti also reported progress in its global quantum systems:
- A 9-qubit processor has been installed at the Quantum Computing Center in Israel.
- A 24-qubit system is operational at the newly opened National Quantum Computing Center in the UK.
Moreover, Rigetti is on track to launch its Ankaa 3 84-qubit system by the end of 2024, expecting to achieve fidelity above 99%.
A Growing Sector with Financial Challenges
Although the third-quarter results show financial challenges for these companies, they also reflect significant advancements in the development of more advanced quantum hardware. IonQ stands out for its rapid revenue growth, D-Wave for its focus on cloud services, and Rigetti for its long-term vision with innovative architectures.
The quantum computing market continues to attract the attention of investors and companies as these firms seek to overcome the limitations of classical systems and generate revolutionary applications in science, industry, and technology.
via: DCD