Rigetti Delays 108-Qubit System, Highlighting Industry's Quality Quest

BERKELEY, CA – January 09, 2026 – Rigetti Computing (Nasdaq: RGTI) announced today a delay in the general availability of its next-generation 108-qubit quantum computer, a move that sent a ripple through the market and offered a stark reminder of the immense technical hurdles facing the quantum industry. The company is now targeting the end of the first quarter of 2026 for the launch of its Cepheus™-1-108Q system, a revision of several months from its prior roadmap.

The reason, according to the full-stack quantum computing pioneer, is a strategic decision to prioritize performance. Rigetti encountered unexpected "complexities with our tunable couplers," a critical component for managing multi-qubit interactions, prompting the need for another chip fabrication cycle to optimize the system.

“While we are making strong progress with Cepheus-1-108Q, we are taking more time to test and optimize the system to ensure the performance is up to our standards,” said Rigetti CEO Dr. Subodh Kulkarni in a statement. The company is aiming for a median two-qubit gate fidelity of 99.5%, a crucial metric for computational accuracy. “We have a clear understanding of what we need to do to achieve 99.5% median two-qubit gate fidelity, and are well on our way.”

The announcement underscores a pivotal moment for the quantum sector, where the narrative is increasingly shifting from simply counting qubits to delivering high-quality, reliable quantum processors capable of running meaningful computations.

The Quantum Fidelity Gauntlet

Rigetti's delay is not a story of failure, but a public acknowledgment of the painstaking, iterative process of building a functional quantum computer. The specific mention of "tunable couplers" points to one of the most sophisticated challenges in scaling superconducting quantum systems. These components act like microscopic dials, allowing engineers to precisely control the quantum-mechanical interaction between individual qubits. Getting them right is essential for performing complex two-qubit gates—the building blocks of quantum algorithms—but their calibration is notoriously difficult. Imperfect tuning can lead to "crosstalk," where operations on one pair of qubits unintentionally affect others, introducing errors that corrupt the computation.

This focus on quality is reflected in the pursuit of high gate fidelity. A 99.5% fidelity means that a quantum operation will perform correctly 995 times out of 1,000. While this sounds high, errors in quantum computing are cumulative. A complex algorithm involving thousands of gates would be rendered useless by even seemingly small error rates. Rigetti reported it has already achieved 99% fidelity on its prototype 108-qubit system, but that final half-percent is a monumental engineering challenge that separates a laboratory curiosity from a commercially viable machine.

The company's commitment to this goal, even at the cost of a delay, signals a maturation of the industry. For years, the "quantum race" was defined by a sprint to higher qubit counts. Now, as companies like Rigetti move toward deploying systems for enterprise and government clients, the emphasis has shifted to the quality and reliability of those qubits. This delay can be seen as a strategic pause, prioritizing long-term viability and customer trust over a short-term milestone announcement.

Investor Patience Put to the Test

While the decision may be technically sound, financial markets reacted with predictable anxiety. On the day of the announcement, Rigetti’s stock (RGTI) fell 2.10%, closing at $24.72. The dip continues a difficult trend for the company, which has seen its stock slide over the past month. The news prompted a flurry of analyst revisions, reflecting the uncertainty inherent in the deep-tech sector.

Benchmark lowered its price target from $50 to $40, citing a slowdown in momentum, though it maintained a "Buy" rating. Other firms offered a mixed outlook, with Wedbush initiating coverage at "Outperform" while Jefferies began with a more cautious "Hold." The consensus among analysts remains a "Moderate Buy," but the episode highlights the delicate balance quantum companies must strike between ambitious technological promises and the unforgiving timelines of public markets.

Rigetti, like many of its peers, is not yet profitable, reporting a negative EBITDA of $73.01 million over the last twelve months on revenue of just $7.49 million. With operating losses widening and revenue declining year-over-year, any perceived setback in its technology roadmap can spook investors who are betting on a long-term, high-reward payoff. This delay serves as a case study in the volatile journey of quantum stocks, where progress is measured not in quarterly earnings but in multi-year engineering breakthroughs.

A Crowded and Competitive Field

Rigetti’s push for a high-fidelity 108-qubit system takes place within a fiercely competitive global landscape. While its modular chiplet architecture—tiling together twelve 9-qubit chips to form the Cepheus-1-108Q—is an innovative approach to scaling, rivals are advancing their own roadmaps at a rapid pace.

IBM, another leader in superconducting qubits, has already unveiled its 1,121-qubit Condor chip. Google Quantum AI recently made headlines with its 105-qubit "Willow" processor, which demonstrated significant progress in quantum error correction—a key step toward fault-tolerant machines. Meanwhile, companies pursuing different hardware modalities are also hitting major milestones. IonQ, which uses trapped-ion technology, announced 99.99% two-qubit gate fidelity in late 2025, a benchmark that sets a high bar for the entire industry.

This competitive pressure makes Rigetti's decision to delay all the more significant. Rather than rushing a product to market to match competitor qubit counts, the company is doubling down on the metric that many experts believe will ultimately determine the winner of the quantum race: performance. The Cepheus-1-108Q, when it arrives, will be judged not just on its 108 qubits, but on the quality of the computations it can perform for the national labs, research centers, and enterprise clients waiting to harness its power. The delay, while painful in the short term, is a bet that in the world of quantum computing, quality will ultimately conquer quantity.