New York, May 26, 2026, 06:01 EDT
- D-Wave quoted at $29.28 premarket, down 0.4%. Shares finished Friday up 14.2% at $29.40.
- The stock jumped roughly 44.5% last week after investors picked up on a proposed $100 million CHIPS Act funding agreement.
- U.S. funding hasn’t closed yet, and the share sale plan would hand the government an equity stake.
D-Wave Quantum Inc. shares edged lower before the bell Tuesday. The move follows a strong rally after the latest funding round, which saw the stock jump about 44.5% last week. The shares, traded in New York, were at $29.28 as of 5:56 a.m. EDT, off 0.4%. They closed Friday at $29.40, up 14.2% that day.
U.S. markets reopened following the Memorial Day holiday, and traders are weighing if the latest jump in quantum-computing stocks will keep going. NYSE recognizes May 25 as the Memorial Day holiday for markets in 2026, according to its calendar. Reuters said S&P 500 and Nasdaq futures were higher early Tuesday as trading resumed after the break.
D-Wave is moving on a letter of intent with the U.S. Department of Commerce to secure $100 million in potential CHIPS and Science Act funding. The company said the funds would go to scaling its annealing and gate-model quantum systems. In exchange, D-Wave would issue $100 million worth of common stock to the department if the deal is finalized.
Stocks are moving on federal spending news. Last week, Reuters said the Biden administration is planning to take $2 billion in equity stakes in nine quantum-computing firms. IBM could get $1 billion, GlobalFoundries $375 million, and D-Wave, Rigetti Computing and Infleqtion are each in line for about $100 million.
Quantum computing taps quantum physics to handle tough problems that traditional computers can find hard. D-Wave is known for quantum annealing—mainly used in optimization tasks like scheduling, routing, or resource allocation. The company is also at work on gate-model systems, which rivals including IBM and Rigetti are building.
D-Wave CEO Alan Baratz said the planned U.S. investment would “scale quantum innovation domestically,” and could help speed up both fabrication and customer applications. Baratz’s statement came in the company’s funding release. Business Wire
D-Wave gave investors an update on operating numbers ahead of the funding deal. First-quarter revenue came in at $2.9 million, down 81% from last year. Bookings jumped to $33.4 million from $1.6 million. Bookings represent future revenue from customer orders. The period’s numbers also reflect a $20 million system sale to Florida Atlantic University and a $10 million two-year quantum-computing-as-a-service contract with a Fortune 100 company.
Bulls point to the balance sheet. D-Wave closed March holding $588.4 million in cash and marketable securities, almost double what it had a year ago. Remaining performance obligations jumped to $42.4 million.
Risks are clear. The funding still needs final documents, and D-Wave’s SEC filing said talks might stop or be called off, targets might slip, funds might fall through, and current shareholders could see dilution from the new stock. The company reported a first-quarter net loss of $18.4 million. That’s up from a $5.4 million loss last year.
Competition is moving. IBM plans to use its award on a quantum-chip manufacturing venture, and GlobalFoundries said it is adding quantum technology manufacturing capacity. Rigetti and Infleqtion are also among those getting funds. The group draws attention to whether Washington is putting money behind a range of technical ideas, not just backing a single winner.
Infleqtion CEO Matthew Kinsella told Reuters the investments “further validate” the idea that quantum computing is moving quicker than a lot of people think. That’s one reason for the sector move, but it means D-Wave will need to show it can turn government support and customer bookings into smoother revenue. Reuters
D-Wave’s first investor day is set for June 1 at the New York Stock Exchange. In the announcement, Baratz said “proof, not potential, will define the winners.” The stock trades above just research fundamentals now. Business Wire
