The Trump administration has dismissed a report that it is "currently" negotiating equity stakes in quantum computing companies like IonQ, Rigetti Computing, and D-Wave Quantum. Despite this, shares of these companies remained high on Thursday.

A spokesperson stated, "The Commerce Department is not currently negotiating equity stakes with quantum computing companies."

The brief statement leaves room for investor optimism about quantum companies and the potential for future deals.

Terms like "currently" could imply that negotiations might occur later, and "equity" could suggest an alternative structure for any potential deal. For instance, warrants would give the government the right to purchase shares at a predetermined price in the future, rather than acquiring ownership now.

Rigetti addressed the situation, stating, "We are continuously engaging with the U.S. government on funding opportunities. If the U.S. does not take the lead in supporting these breakthroughs, other nations will, posing significant risks to our national security."

IonQ and Quantum Computing both declined to comment on the matter.

On Thursday, The Wall Street Journal reported that each quantum firm has been discussing minimum funding awards of $10 million from the government in exchange for ownership stakes.

A federal stake in quantum would be substantially different from the bailout deal with Intel in August. That deal effectively saved Intel, converting nearly $9 billion in grants into a 10% ownership stake, making the government Intel’s largest shareholder. Intel had $53 billion in revenue in FY2024 but was losing market share before the deal.

Governments around the world view quantum computing as the next major technological advancement, with the U.S. considering it essential for maintaining a competitive edge over China in future computing.

However, the technology is not yet commercially viable.

Quantum firms currently generate minimal revenue and are incurring significant costs to develop technology that has not yet been proven at scale. A federal investment would carry considerable risk, particularly as major companies are already making significant progress in the field.

Companies like Google, IBM, Microsoft, and Amazon have established major quantum programs. Google's recent announcement highlighted its Willow chip, which ran an algorithm thirteen thousand times faster than a supercomputer.