Quantum computers are examples of technological innovation that could change the whole world. And, unlike JPGs of monkeys, quantum computing is likely to appreciate in value over time. D-Wave Systems, one of the pioneers of the technology, is looking to do some of that appreciating now.
The quantum computing specialist plans to do this by going public. Not about anyone’s dirty laundry, either. D-Wave is joining up with DPCM Capital to debut on the stock market. DPCM is a special purpose acquisition company or SPAC. There’s a lot of this going around.
Riding the D-Wave to Moneytown
The company is expected to reach a valuation of $1.6 billion when all is said and done. That’s not a lot of money, as tech companies go, but quantum computing is hard and results take time. Investors don’t really go in for that sort of thing. Even so, this is a big deal.
Quantum tech isn’t exactly new. It’s been in development for some time, and it’s even possible to buy components for quantum computers. But you’ll have to supply your own hardware environment, and that’s not cheap. But this listing means that quantum computing, once a highly experimental and theoretical field, is finally getting to the point where it might become profitable. Investor money might lead to developments progressing faster, though D-Wave certainly doesn’t need much help on that score.
Current research and development will see the company developing “…the next generations of annealing quantum computers, advancing its gate-model program, and continuing to enhance D-Wave’s Leap quantum cloud service, hybrid solvers, and software development tools.” The company is unique in that it’s the only one exploring both annealing and gate-model quantum machines. This gives it the sort of advantage its SPAC partners believe will translate into cash down the line.
DCPM Capital’s CEO explains, “As the only quantum computing company in the world that is building both annealing and gate-model quantum computers, D-Wave will have access to the full projected $150 billion quantum computing total addressable market (TAM). With the near-term TAM expected to exceed $1 billion, and the potential for the TAM to rapidly expand as annealing quantum computing applications mature and gate-model applications emerge, we are confident that D-Wave will continue to deliver long-term value to stockholders by accelerating the commercial quantum computing market.”
But that’s just the financial and technological side of things. There’s also the matter of the stock exchange symbol the newly formed D-Wave Quantum Inc. will be trading under. That’d be QBTS, which is a lovely little shortened form of qubits. Tech nerds have quite a strange sense of humour sometimes.