The crazy ride in quantum computing stocks continues as shares rip higher on Microsoft’s ‘quantum-ready’ directive

Quantum computing stocks rallied Wednesday, spurred by a directive from Microsoft urging businesses to get “quantum-ready” in 2025, and as investors returned to “risk on” trades after December core inflation came in weaker than forecast.

“We are at the advent of the reliable quantum computing era,” wrote Mitra Azizirad, president and chief operating officer of Microsoft’s strategic missions and technologies, in a blog post. “And we are right on the cusp of seeing quantum computers solve meaningful problems and capture new business value.”

Microsoft’s remarks helped drive shares of Rigetti Computing more than 23% higher Wednesday, while D-Wave quantum surged 21%, IonQ climbed 35%, and the Defiance Quantum and AI ETF added 2.7%. The rally was also fueled by Nvidia on Tuesday announcing a “Quantum Day” at its GTC conference in March.

Microsoft announced a program to help businesses prepare for the advent of the quantum computing era. Azizirad said this is a “critical and catalyzing time for business leaders to act,” and expects quantum research and development to rapidly accelerate over the next year.

Microsoft is the latest company to spur enthusiasm for quantum computing, a field of computer science that leverages quantum mechanics to solve complex problems faster than traditional computers. Quantum stocks skyrocketed last year after Google, a unit of Alphabet, announced a breakthrough with its Willow quantum computing chip.

Comments from Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang this month took the wind out of last year’s rally, suggesting that useful quantum computers are decades away. Shares of quantum stocks also slumped this week following comments from Meta Platforms CEO Mark Zuckerberg that further tempered expectations.

Despite the recent enthusiasm for the sector, many on Wall Street also believe real-world use cases for the technology are decades away. Supporters say quantum computers will be able to conduct computing tasks traditional computers can’t, while processing far more data.