Get real.
The expression got a lot of use around college campuses starting in the 1960s, and it means to face the facts, accept the truth and stop being delusional.
A lot of people want the quantum-computing industry to get real —as in: Does the science that promises to revolutionize how computers operate actually work in the real world?
The idea is to apply quantum mechanics laws to solve highly complex problems more easily than existing computers do.
The industry has had a love-hate relationship with investors lately, but quantum-computer stocks took off when D-Wave Quantum (QBTS) said it had achieved a breakthrough.
Alan Baratz, CEO of D-Wave Quantum says his company achieved an ‘industry first.’ (Photo By David Fitzgerald/Sportsfile via Getty Images)
David Fitzgerald/Getty Images
D-Wave CEO claims quantum supremacy
The company said its annealing quantum computer — designed to find the optimal solution to problems involving many solutions —outperformed one of the world’s most powerful classical supercomputers.
D-Wave’s quantum computer performed the most complex simulation in minutes and with a level of accuracy that would take nearly one million years using the supercomputer, the company said.
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It would also require more than the world’s annual electricity consumption to solve this problem using the supercomputer, which is built with graphics processing unit clusters.
“Our demonstration of quantum computational supremacy on a useful problem is an industry first,” D-Wave Chief Executive Alan Baratz said in a statement.
“All other claims of quantum systems outperforming classical computers have been disputed or involved random number generation of no practical value.”
In addition to D-Wave, shares of Quantum Computing (QUBT) , Rigetti Computing (RGTI) , and IonQ (IONQ) also surged.
The sector recently had been pummeled by investors after Jensen Huang, founder and CEO of AI-chip behemoth Nvidia (NVDA) said we were roughly 20 years from seeing “very useful quantum computers.”
“At D-Wave, we are seeing first hand the value that Quantum is providing today for hundreds of companies,” Baratz told analysts during the company’s fourth-quarter earnings call. “I’m not talking about 15 or 30 years from now, I’m talking about today.”
Analyst encouraged by D-Wave’s growing backlog
D-Wave Quantum posted a wider-than-expected fourth-quarter loss, while revenue beat Wall Street’s forecasts.
The company’s first-quarter guidance came in well above expectations.
Related: Surprising news slams popular quantum computing stock
“As previously stated, we expect to be the first pure-play quantum company to reach profitability and with less cash invested than any of our competitors,” Baratz said. “We truly are a market leader.”
D-Wave shares closed Friday up 47% at $10.13 and have nearly quintupled (up 383%) from a year ago.
B. Riley raised its price target on D-Wave Quantum to $12 from $11 and affirmed a buy rating on the shares.
D-Wave’s Q4 headline sales and EPS were mixed, but the investment firm saw “numerous” positive long-term takeaways. B. Riley said the shares were at an attractive entry point for investors.
Roth MKM analyst Suji Desilva raised its price target on D-Wave Quantum to $10 from $7 while maintaining a buy rating on the shares after its fourth-quarter results and guidance.
The company is driving revenue and booking opportunities while leveraging its growing sales effort to penetrate key vertical opportunities, Desilva said.
The analyst said he was encouraged by D-Wave’s growing backlog and opportunity to diversify into hardware sales beyond core QCaaS quantum cloud services.
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