Rigetti's New Orders and India MoU: Will They Boost Q3 Performance?

As the third quarter approaches, Rigetti Computing RGTI is trying to turn strategy into reality. In September, the company announced purchase orders totaling approximately $5.7 million for two of its Novera 9-qubit quantum systems, one going to an Asian technology manufacturer and the other to a California-based AI/applied physics startup. At the same time, Rigetti inked a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with India’s Centre for Development of Advanced Computing (C-DAC) to co-develop hybrid quantum-classical systems under India’s ChipIN initiative. Can these recent developments push Rigetti out of R&D mode and into meaningful commercial momentum?

From an investor's perspective, the importance lies in execution and timing. The purchase orders signal commercial traction, and the India partnership opens a large, government-backed market segment. But securing orders and signing MOUs are only part of the journey. What matters next is whether these translate into revenue growth, improved unit economics and visible progress in technology scalability. With quantum computing still mainly in the early innings, the upcoming third-quarter results will be a litmus test for Rigetti’s ability to move from promise to performance.

Peers Updates

IonQ IONQ is strengthening its quantum strategy through the acquisitions of Oxford Ionics and Lightsynq, adding advanced ion-trap and photonic-interconnect technologies to help build more scalable, higher-performance systems. These moves also lift its intellectual-property portfolio to over 1,000 assets, further bolstering its competitive edge.

With broader technical capabilities, IonQ is positioned to accelerate progress in both quantum computing and quantum networking, supporting growing interest in hybrid quantum models. Overall, these developments signal IonQ’s shift from a mainly research-focused player toward deeper commercial adoption and a larger role across the rapidly evolving quantum ecosystem.

Arqit Quantum ARQQ is reinforcing its foothold in quantum-safe security by joining the Oracle Defense Ecosystem, giving it a stronger reach into secure government and enterprise networks. The company also gained meaningful validation after being chosen by the UK’s NCSC to help support post-quantum cryptography migration.

Meanwhile, Fabric Networks licensed Arqit’s NetworkSecure platform to deploy quantum-safe encryption at scale, signaling early signs of commercial traction. Overall, these moves suggest growing market confidence and real-world adoption as Arqit works to turn partnerships into sustained revenue growth.

Rigetti’s Price Performance, Valuation and Estimates

Shares of RGTI have gained 121.3% in the year-to-date period compared with the industry’s growth of 7.9%.

From a valuation standpoint, Rigetti trades at a price-to-book ratio of 19.79, above the industry average. RGTI carries a Value Score of F.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Rigetti’s 2025 earnings implies a significant 75% rise from the year-ago period.

The company currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).

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