New York, January 23, 2026, 13:07 EST — Regular session
D-Wave Quantum Inc shares dropped 5.4% to $25.94 in early Friday afternoon trading, erasing an initial gain and setting the stage for a softer close to the week. The stock kicked off at $27.14, dipping as low as $25.71, while over 23 million shares changed hands.
The slide is significant since QBTS has turned into a hotspot for quick trades: even a slight signal of more supply or a shift in its product plans hits the tape fast. The company is pushing hard to prove it can shift from lab jargon to consistent commercial output.
A prospectus supplement filed on Jan. 20 registered the resale of up to 10,430,444 shares by certain selling stockholders, mostly linked to D-Wave’s Quantum Circuits acquisition. The filing clarified that D-Wave won’t get any proceeds from these sales. It emphasized that the selling stockholders “may sell any, all or none” of the shares. Venture investors named include Sequoia Capital funds, ARCH Venture funds, and Canaan, all listed as eligible resellers. (SEC)
D-Wave announced earlier this week it has finalized the acquisition of Quantum Circuits, bringing “error-corrected” gate-model technology into its portfolio alongside its existing annealing systems. CEO Alan Baratz called the deal “a watershed moment” in a company statement. Quantum Circuits co-founder Rob Schoelkopf said the merger provides D-Wave with “a decisive advantage” in gate-model quantum computing. (D-Wave Quantum)
Put simply, quantum annealing is D-Wave’s niche method aimed at specific optimization challenges, whereas gate-model machines represent the broader quantum computing approach favored by many competitors. D-Wave now markets itself as a “dual-platform” provider, offering customers cloud access to its systems.
Registering shares for resale doesn’t guarantee they’ll flood the market immediately. However, it sets a clear figure for potential supply. Traders usually factor in this kind of overhang fast, especially when a stock is already volatile with wide daily swings.
The selloff didn’t stop there. IonQ dropped 2.4%, Rigetti shed 2.7%, and Quantum Computing Inc declined 2.9%. Meanwhile, the broader market showed less movement: the SPDR S&P 500 ETF edged down a bit, while the Invesco QQQ ETF nudged up slightly.
Investors are focusing less on today’s headlines and more on what comes next: whether big shareholders will sell into any gains, and if the company can maintain momentum with product launches instead of getting bogged down in paperwork.
The risk is clear. Should selling shareholders rush to offload shares during the registration window, the flood of supply could overwhelm buyers. This is particularly true in a sector where sentiment shifts rapidly and valuations often outpace actual cash flow.
Execution poses another risk. D-Wave is rolling out a new hardware program as it pledges advances on a second computing architecture, but quantum timelines have a notorious tendency to slip.
D-Wave’s Qubits 2026 user conference is set for Jan. 27-28 in Boca Raton, Florida. The company plans to unveil its latest roadmap and highlight customer projects there. (D-Wave Quantum)
For now, the stock will probably move based on sector momentum, any hint of secondary selling, and new information about the post-deal product strategy.
