Quantum Computing Stocks Suffer $11 Billion Loss After Nvidia's Warning

Quantum computing stocks have experienced significant volatility in recent months. After a period of optimism that surged in late 2024, the beginning of 2025 brought a stark change. A grim market outlook from the CEO of Nvidia sent shockwaves across the quantum computing sector, resulting in substantial losses for the largest companies involved.

In the closing months of 2024, quantum stock values surged due to increasing demand for generative AI applications and significant advancements in technology, including a groundbreaking chip developed by Nvidia. Yet, this optimism was short-lived. Between January 4 and January 13, data from AltIndex.com indicated that the combined market value of the top five quantum computing stocks plunged by nearly $11 billion.

Rigetti Faces Largest Decline

Nvidia, which had led a bullish stock market rally driven by its AI innovations, shocked the market with a more cautious view on the potential of quantum computing. Following CEO Jensen Huang's comments about the industry's near-term prospects, many leading quantum companies experienced a rapid decline in stock prices, which led to the disappearance of billions in value almost overnight.

Within the four days post-Huang's comments, major players like IBM, Rigetti Computing (RGTI), D-Wave Quantum (QBTS), Quantum Computing (QUBT), and IonQ (IONQ) collectively lost approximately $8 billion. By January 13, this loss had further escalated to a staggering total of $10.9 billion, with stock prices deteriorating by 30% to 50%.

Among these companies, Rigetti faced the most significant setback, with its stock dropping by an alarming 53% over nine days. This substantial decline translated into a $2.8 billion decrease in the company's value. Sentiment towards Rigetti also soured, as evidenced by a drop in its investor forum score from 82 at the start of January to a mere 57.

Similarly, Quantum Computing saw a drastic reduction, with its stock value diminishing by 48%, equating to a $1.1 billion loss. Both D-Wave Quantum and IonQ recorded around a 30% decrease, with losses totaling approximately $910 million and $3.3 billion, respectively.

Shifting Investor Sentiment

The quantum computing sector is often marked by rapid shifts in sentiment, influenced by technological advancements and expert opinions. However, the impact of Nvidia's recent statements has been particularly extreme.

According to AltIndex, which monitors various data sources including social media trends, investor discussions, and searches, all top ten quantum stocks experienced a downturn in their sentiment scores over the past couple of weeks. SEALSQ Corp (LAES) led the downward trend, with its AI score plummeting by 42% to a score of 54 out of 100. D-Wave Quantum and Rigetti Computing also saw significant reductions, each dropping around 33%. In contrast, Quantum Computing, despite experiencing a significant 27% drop, retained the highest AI score amongst quantum stocks at 78 points, while Teradyne (TER) posted the lowest AI score of 52 points.

Quantum, Stocks, Nvidia