Rigetti Computing Wins Up to $100 Million U.S. Contract as Q1 Revenue Jumps to $4.4 Million
Updated
Updated · The Globe and Mail · May 29
Rigetti Computing Wins Up to $100 Million U.S. Contract as Q1 Revenue Jumps to $4.4 Million
3 articles · Updated · The Globe and Mail · May 29
$100 million is the ceiling on a new U.S. government contract awarded to Rigetti in May, a potentially major boost for a company whose 2025 revenue was just $7.1 million.
Q1 2026 sales rose to $4.4 million from $1.5 million in 2025, suggesting momentum is improving after full-year revenue fell 34.3% and government customers accounted for 90.2% of sales.
Rigetti still remains deeply unprofitable, posting a 2025 net loss of $216.2 million and negative free cash flow of $77.2 million, even with no debt and a strong current ratio of 37.4x.
The contract also sharpens Rigetti's edge over smaller rival Quantum Computing, which lifted Q1 revenue to $3.7 million from $39,000 but was not among the companies receiving the May government award.
Both quantum hardware players trade on high-risk expectations rather than earnings, with Rigetti focused on superconducting systems already used by IBM and Google while the sector still awaits broad commercial adoption.
Can Rigetti survive the quantum race when giants like IBM, using the same technology, also receive massive government funding?
As quantum firms burn cash, can recent technical breakthroughs finally unlock a path to commercial profitability before the money runs out?
With Europe betting on photonics, is the US backing the right horse by pouring billions into superconducting quantum tech?