Is Nvidia S Jensen Huang Right About Quantum Computing

Bonisiwe Shabane

-Jan 2, 2026, 2:29 AM

is nvidia s jensen huang right about quantum computing

In 1981, the legendary physicist Richard Feynman proposed a radical idea: since nature is quantum at its core, we need a new type of computer that operates on quantum principles to simulate nature directly. For over 40 years, this remained a difficult challenge because quantum bits (qubits) are incredibly fragile and sensitive to noise, often becoming unstable or "decoherent" from the slightest environmental change. However, the industry has finally reached a fundamental breakthrough with the creation of logical qubits—stable, error-corrected units made of many physical qubits working together—allowing us to move from experimental toys to reliable systems. At GTC 2025, Jensen Huang unveiled a vision where quantum computers are not standalone machines but are fused with AI-powered GPU supercomputers into a single accelerated platform. To bridge these two worlds, Nvidia introduced NVQL Link, a groundbreaking interconnect architecture capable of moving terabytes of data between quantum and classical hardware thousands of times every second. This allows the CUDA-Q platform to orchestrate real-time error correction and hybrid simulations, where the right algorithms run on GPUs and QPUs side-by-side with latencies of just a few microseconds.

This revolution marks the rise of "Science AI," a shift where AI is used for much more than just chatbots. By tokenizing everything from chemicals and proteins to genes and 3D structures, AI can now learn the "language" of nature to respond and generate scientific breakthroughs. Through a massive partnership with the Department of Energy to build seven new AI supercomputers, Jensen Huang is ensuring that this scalable architecture—which can grow from hundreds to hundreds of thousands of qubits—will stay... 10-Point Summary of the Quantum-AI Breakthrough: Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang is growing more bullish about quantum computing — and he expects they'll start solving real-world problems in the coming years. "Quantum computing is reaching an inflection point," Jensen declared during his keynote speech at Nvidia's GTC Paris developer conference Wednesday.

Quantum computers are machines that use the laws of quantum mechanics to solve problems too complex for classical computers, which store information in bits (ones and zeroes). Quantum computers use quantum bits, or "qubits," which can be zero, one or something in between — the aim being to process much larger volumes of data to facilitate breakthroughs in areas like medicine,... Quantum has been a buzzy space for investors with the rise of several popular stocks, such as Rigetti Computing and IonQ, which on Monday acquired Oxford Ionics for $1.1 billion. Shares of Rigetti and IonQ were up 4.5% and 3.7% respectively in U.S. premarket trading. Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang said quantum computing is reaching an inflection point, unveiling CUDA-Q to bridge quantum and classical computing systems for real-world problem-solving.

Huang described a shift from data centers to “AI factories” that generate intelligent outputs, marking the start of a new industrial era. Huang said humanoid robots will soon be teachable and affordable for small businesses, not just industrial giants. Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang is turning his attention to the next critical enabler of the artificial intelligence (AI) revolution: quantum computing. Complete the form to unlock this article and enjoy unlimited free access to all PYMNTS content — no additional logins required. Quantum computing stocks dropped Wednesday after Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang declared that useful quantum computers are many years away. "If you said 15 years for very useful quantum computers, that would probably be on the early side," he said during Nvidia's analyst day.

"If you said 30, it's probably on the late side. But if you picked 20, I think a whole bunch of us would believe it." Huang said he believes Nvidia will play a "very significant part" in creating the computers and helping the industry... D-Wave Quantum dropped more than 30%, while the Defiance Quantum & AI ETF fell 4%. Quantum Computing, which announced a stock offering to raise $100 million, sank 37%. "As valuations have become a bit lofty, we're not surprised by today's correction," said AXS Investments CEO Greg Bassuk, calling the reaction somewhat "overblown." Nvidia (NVDA) chief executive Jensen Huang doesn’t think useful quantum... Quantum computing stocks such as IonQ (IONQ) and Rigetti Computing (RGTI) fell by more than 40% Wednesday morning after Huang’s comments during Nvidia’s financial analyst day at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES).

IonQ’s shares were down by about 45%, while Rigetti’s shares fell by more than 48% mid-morning. Quantum Computing (QUBT), which announced a stock offering earlier this week to raise $100 million, saw its shares fall by about 49%. D-Wave Quantum (QBTS), meanwhile, saw shares fall by around 47%. “If you said 15 years for very useful quantum computers, that would probably be on the early side,” Huang said. “If you said 30, it’s probably on the late side. But if you picked 20, I think a whole bunch of us would believe it.” The Nvidia chief said he thinks the AI chipmaker will play “a significant part” in the development of quantum...

An AI-generated image illustrates the typical "chandelier" design of a quantum computer. (bpawesome/Shutterstock) Nvidia (NVDA) Chief Executive Jensen Huang's controversial remarks about quantum computing reached Rigetti Computing CEO Subodh Kulkarni via text. A frantic acquaintance in the investment community wanted to know, "What's going on? Why is Jensen so negative about quantum computing?" Gil Luria, an analyst with D.A. Davidson, had just given another quantum computing company, IonQ, a buy rating. He was… 12/29/2025 OpenAI news often drives many AI stocks up or down.

Many tech companies have a stake in OpenAI's success or... 12/29/2025 OpenAI news often drives many AI stocks up or down.... Get instant access to exclusive stock lists, expert market analysis and powerful tools with 2 months of IBD Digital for only $20! Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang is making a big U-turn on quantum computing. After years of downplaying the technology's timeline, the tech titan is now pouring money into quantum startups. Some subscribers prefer to save their log-in information so they do not have to enter their User ID and Password each time they visit the site.

To activate this function, check the 'Save my User ID and Password' box in the log-in section. This will save the password on the computer you're using to access the site. Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang apologized for comments he made earlier this year that caused stock prices of quantum computing companies to plunge. During a panel meeting at Nvidia’s GTC conference, Huang said he was “wrong” in suggesting that quantum computers would not be useful for 15 to 30 years. Share prices for IonQ and D-Wave suffered major drops after his first statement in January before losing more than 40% value from their stock. According to Huang, his initial comment relied on his background of constructing old-fashioned computer systems that necessitate decades to bring to life.

However, he invited leaders from quantum companies like PsiQuantum and D-Wave to discuss why his timeline was off. “They can explain why I was wrong,” Huang said, calling the panel the “first event where a CEO invites guests to prove him wrong.” The discussion focused on challenges in quantum computing, such as fixing errors caused by the unstable nature of quantum particles. Companies argued that progress is faster than Huang assumed, with some aiming to build practical quantum systems within years, not decades. Huang’s New Idea Call It a “Quantum Instrument” Even while apologizing, Huang questioned whether labeling these systems as “quantum computers” sets unfair expectations.

He suggested calling them “quantum instruments” instead, as they solve specific scientific problems rather than handling everyday tasks like spreadsheets. NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang hosted a Quantum Day panel at GTC featuring Quantum Circuits Chief Scientist and Co-founder Rob Schoelkopf and other industry leaders. Rob and Jensen discussed three key topics that provided critical sanity checks on quantum computing’s readiness for enterprises, investors, and the marketplace at large, and all three involve conquering error correction as the industry’s... The path to fault-tolerant, commercial-ready quantum computing starts now. Explore with us. Learn more about our technology, products, or customer partnership program.

We look forward to meeting you. “Very useful quantum computers are still a few decades away,” Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang said during a keynote presentation at the 2025 Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas last week. His comment sent shockwaves through the quantum computing industry, with shares of leading companies like Rigetti Computing, D-Wave Quantum and IonQ plummeting between 30 and 50 percent. These companies’ CEOs were quick to defend their industry in a bid to win back investor confidence. By clicking submit, you agree to our <a href="http://observermedia.com/terms">terms of service</a> and acknowledge we may use your information to send you emails, product samples, and promotions on this website and other properties. You can opt out anytime.

“Jensen Huang has a misunderstanding of quantum. He is ‘dead wrong’ about D-Wave,” Alan Baratz, CEO of D-Wave Quantum, which develops quantum computing systems, told Observer. “There is more than one approach to building a quantum computer. Our (D-Wave) systems are performing scientific computations on important problems that are not solvable by even massively parallel GPU systems.” D-Wave uses quantum annealing, an approach that excels in solving specific computational optimization problems. This method is particularly useful for materials simulation, scheduling and logistics applications. “Commercial quantum computing is already here,” Baratz added.

For example, Canada-based Pattison Food Group reduced an 80-hour scheduling task to 15 hours using D-Wave’s technology. Another client, NTT DOCOMO, Japan’s largest telecom provider, slashed the time to optimize network resources from 27 hours to just 40 seconds. Quantum computing CEOs are also talking up their companies’ revenue and profit prospects. D-Wave estimated its 2024 sales jumped 120 percent from the previous year. IonQ, which makes quantum computers, predicts it will turn a profit on more than $1 billion in sales by 2030, CEO Peter Chapman wrote in a blog post on Jan. 10.

Quantum computing relies on qubits—units of data that can exist in multiple states at once—and holds the potential to quickly solve calculations that would take even supercomputers a thousand years. Exciting recent developments include Google’s Willow chip, which solved a random circuit sampling (RCS) benchmark problem in just five minutes. RCS, one of the most challenging benchmarks for quantum computers, would take today’s fastest supercomputer 10 septillion years (1 followed by 24 zeros) to solve, Google claims.

Is Nvidia S Jensen Huang Right About Quantum Computing

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"If You Said 30, It's Probably On The Late Side.