Rigetti Computing (RGTI Quick QuoteRGTI - Free Report) exited first-quarter 2026 with encouraging progress across its technology roadmap, highlighted by the commercial launch of its 108-qubit Cepheus-1 system and continued advancements in gate fidelity and chiplet-based scaling. The company generated $4.4 million in revenues in the first quarter of 2026, driven primarily by on-premises Novera QPU deliveries and government-related contracts, while reporting a $26 million operating loss. Management emphasized that the quantum computing market remains in its early stages, with revenues still heavily dependent on the timing of system shipments and research-oriented engagements rather than recurring commercial workloads.

Rigetti continued to deepen its presence across government, academic and cloud-based quantum ecosystems during the quarter. The company expanded availability of its Cepheus-1-108Q system across Rigetti Quantum Cloud Services, Amazon Braket, Microsoft Azure Quantum and qBraid, while also advancing key international projects, including the previously announced $8.4 million order from India’s Centre for Development of Advanced Computing (C-DAC).

Management reiterated its long-term target of achieving quantum advantage within roughly three years through higher qubit counts, improved fidelities and error-mitigation capabilities. However, commercial demand remains nascent, with most enterprise customers still focused on experimentation, algorithm development and early-stage research use cases rather than production-scale deployments.

Competition within the quantum computing industry continues to intensify as peers accelerate commercialization efforts and technology development. IonQ (IONQ Quick QuoteIONQ - Free Report) continues to gain traction through expanding enterprise partnerships, cloud integrations and government programs tied to trapped-ion quantum systems. D-Wave Quantum (QBTS Quick QuoteQBTS - Free Report) remains focused on near-term commercial adoption through its annealing-based quantum platform, hybrid quantum-classical offerings and growing enterprise deployments. Meanwhile, Quantum Computing Inc. (QUBT Quick QuoteQUBT - Free Report) is advancing its photonics-based quantum and quantum optimization technologies while targeting opportunities in sensing, cybersecurity and quantum-ready infrastructure markets.

RGTI Stock’s Price Performance

In the year-to-date period, Rigetti’s shares have plunged 13.9%, reflecting continued volatility in the quantum computing space. Among peers, IONQ has emerged as the strongest performer, gaining 24.5%, while QUBT has risen 14.8%. Meanwhile, QBTS shares have lost 14.6%, broadly in line with Rigetti’s decline.

The broader Zacks Internet-Software industry has slipped 14.6% over the same period, suggesting that RGTI has performed largely in line with the broader tech software space despite persistent uncertainty surrounding quantum commercialization.

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Why RGTI Remains a Hold for Now

Growing Government and Research Demand Supports Revenue Visibility: Rigetti continues to benefit from rising demand across government, academic and national research institutions, which remain the company’s primary customer base. First-quarter 2026 revenues surged year over year, driven mainly by Novera QPU deliveries and research-related contracts.

Management also reiterated that the remaining portion of previously announced Novera orders is expected to be recognized in the second quarter, while the $8.4 million C-DAC contract in India is targeted for deployment later this year. Although commercial enterprise adoption remains limited, expanding on-premise system deployments and increasing international engagements provide early validation of Rigetti’s technology and support near-term revenue opportunities.

Cepheus-1-108Q Launch Marks a Major Technical Milestone: Rigetti’s recent launch of the 108-qubit Cepheus-1-108Q system represents a significant advancement in its quantum computing roadmap. The system is now available through Rigetti Quantum Cloud Services, Amazon Braket, Microsoft Azure Quantum and qBraid, strengthening the company’s cloud accessibility and market visibility. Built using a modular chiplet-based architecture, the platform achieved approximately 99.1% median two-qubit gate fidelity and roughly 60-nanosecond gate speeds at launch.

 Management expects fidelity improvements throughout 2026 as it incorporates learnings from prototype systems and fabrication enhancements. The successful deployment reinforces Rigetti’s credibility as one of the few companies currently operating quantum systems above the 100-qubit threshold.

Strong Balance Sheet and Scaling Roadmap Support Long-Term Potential: Rigetti exited the first quarter with nearly $569 million in cash, cash equivalents and available-for-sale investments and no debt, providing meaningful financial flexibility to support long-term R&D investments. The company remains focused on scaling its chiplet-based superconducting architecture toward its stated goal of achieving quantum advantage in roughly three years.

Management believes reaching approximately 1,000 qubits with 99.9% two-qubit gate fidelity and error mitigation capabilities could unlock commercially relevant quantum applications. Supporting this strategy, Rigetti also announced plans to invest up to $100 million in the United Kingdom over the next several years to accelerate development, expand infrastructure and strengthen its presence within global quantum initiatives.

RGTI’s Sales & EPS Growth

In 2026, Rigetti is expected to experience a 247.9% improvement in revenues. On the profitability front, earnings per share are expected to remain negative but increasing 75% year over year.

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RGTI’s Key Challenge

Commercial Quantum Adoption Remains in Early Stages: Despite achieving meaningful progress across its quantum hardware roadmap, Rigetti continues to face challenges in building sustainable commercial demand. First-quarter 2026 revenues were primarily driven by government contracts, research engagements and on-premises Novera system deliveries, while operating loss widened to $26 million due to continued investments in R&D and infrastructure. Management acknowledged that most enterprise customers remain in experimentation, algorithm development and early-stage research phases rather than deploying production-scale quantum workloads.

Revenue visibility also remains highly dependent on the timing of large system shipments and government-funded projects, including the C-DAC deployment expected later this year. While Rigetti continues to target quantum advantage within roughly three years, the gap between technological advancement and broad commercial monetization remains a major overhang on the stock.

RGTI’s Shares Look Overvalued

Rigetti stock is not so cheap, as suggested by the Value Score of F.

Rigetti is currently trading at a price-to-book (P/B) ratio of 11.6X, which is higher than the industry average of 4.73X.

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How to Approach RGTI Stock

Rigetti continues to strengthen its position in quantum computing through the launch of its 108-qubit Cepheus-1-108Q platform, expanding cloud availability and growing adoption among government and research customers. The company’s chiplet-based architecture, improving fidelities and planned international investments support its long-term roadmap toward quantum advantage. However, commercial enterprise adoption remains limited, with most customers still in experimentation and research phases.

Despite stronger year-over-year revenues in first-quarter 2026, Rigetti continues to post elevated operating losses as it invests heavily in R&D and infrastructure. With a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold), the stock appears best suited for long-term, risk-tolerant investors waiting for broader commercialization and more meaningful revenue scalability. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.