D-Wave Quantum CEO Alan Baratz responded critically to comments made by Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang, who stated that viable quantum computers could take 15 to 30 years to develop. Huang’s remarks, which suggested that current quantum technologies would need a million times more qubits to be functional, negatively impacted stocks in the quantum computing sector, causing D-Wave’s shares to drop 36%. Baratz argued that D-Wave’s quantum computing technology is already in use today, citing clients like Mastercard and NTT Docomo that are benefiting from their existing systems. He emphasized that D-Wave employs an annealing approach to quantum computing, which he claims is operational now, contrasting it with the gate-based models that Huang referenced, which may indeed take longer to develop. Despite D-Wave’s recent revenue decline—sales falling 27% to $1.9 million—Baratz highlighted the company’s sizable stock increase of about 600% over the past year. He expressed confidence in D-Wave’s capabilities, suggesting that their systems can tackle complex problems beyond the reach of conventional processors like Nvidia’s. Huang’s comments reflected the tension in the industry as companies continue to refine quantum computing technologies while facing ongoing market volatility.
