Quantinuum has lost almost all of its value $200 million last year, saw revenue drop the first quarter of 2026, and says its technology may never work–yet investors are clamoring to buy the stock.
The quantum computer maker boosted the price and number of shares it will issue on the New York Stock Exchange ahead of its public debut on Thursday, indicating higher-than-anticipated demand.
Quantum computing is a promising technology. It promises to be able to do things that current machines cannot, unlocking advantages for commercial purposes in everything from drug development to defence. Many startups and tech giants, such as IBM and Google are competing to create a powerful quantum computer that can realize these advantages.
The work is costly. In recent months, many firms have benefited from the high tech valuations by going public in order to raise funds. Investors are scrambling to get a piece of this gold rush. In the US, there has been a double-digit increase in publicly traded quantum computers since the beginning of the year.
Some investors may have felt reassured by the government’s support of this technology. The US Department of Commerce announced in May that they would be investing between $2 billion and $100 million each into nine quantum firms, including Quantinuum. The vote of faith in their roadmaps was a testament to the confidence that they had. “tailwind,” Narang claims that Quantinuum had received support from investors in advance of its debut.
Quantinuum will not only be the fourth of its type to list this year in the US, but it will also have been the first company to undergo the slower and more regulated process for an initial public offering.
“You can argue that quantum hasn’t gone through the ringer yet,” Prineha Nrang is a Professor of Physical Science, Electrical and Computer Engineering at the University of California Los Angeles. “That’s exactly why a lot of companies and investors are watching the Quantinuum IPO.”
No company has yet built a computer that is powerful enough for commercial use. When – and whether they ever will – remains uncertain. “In quantum to date, with most companies and equities, you’re not buying a business as of yet, you’re buying a probability,” Olivier Roussy said, Chief Executive Officer of the quantum security firm BTQ Technologies Corp.
Isabella Ward Reporting, Staff Writer at WIRED
