IonQ and SDT Partner to Bring First Superion 256 Quantum System to South Korea

B. Riley Securities is maintaining bullish ratings on IonQ, D-Wave Quantum and Rigetti Computing ahead of Quantum World Congress, betting that a shift in government policy from pure research toward commercialization could open a more meaningful revenue path for the quantum-computing sector. The firm kept Buy ratings with price targets of $100 for IonQ, $40 for D-Wave and $35 for Rigetti. Analyst Craig Ellis pointed to the Department of Energy's From Lab to Market session at the September 23-25 conference as a sign that federal policy may increasingly focus on moving quantum technologies into commercial applications. The event will also feature a two-hour National Quantum Updates session with more than 10 governments, participation from the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy, and back-to-back keynotes from Microsoft and IBM. B. Riley's thesis is sector-wide, but the report provides no fresh revenue forecasts, cash-flow estimates, technical milestones or new valuation work behind the three price targets, leaving the stocks dependent on long-term expectations rather than near-term financial evidence.

Rigetti Computing said in its latest technology update that the biggest challenge in its quantum roadmap is no longer adding more qubits but improving the performance of its flagship 108-qubit Cepheus system. During the second quarter of 2026 earnings call, management acknowledged that coherence time has become the primary bottleneck limiting two-qubit gate fidelity, even as Cepheus-1-108Q stands among only three generally available gate-based quantum computers with more than 100 qubits. The system currently operates with coherence times of roughly 25-30 microseconds, a level that constrains the reliability of quantum operations. Rigetti is directing engineering efforts toward chip redesigns, fabrication process improvements and new materials, including tantalum-capped superconducting contacts, and management expects these initiatives to gradually double or even triple coherence times over the next several years. In peer updates, Quantum Computing Inc. signed a three-year Framework Agreement with Hamad Bin Khalifa University in Qatar covering quantum computing, sensing and communications, while IonQ secured an $8.18 million commercial agreement with Congruity360 to integrate quantum-safe networking into its enterprise data management platform.

IonQ has entered a multi-year strategic partnership with Seoul-based quantum software and technology provider SDT, Inc. The deal marks a double milestone for South Korea, delivering both its first IonQ Superion 256 quantum system and its first silicon-vacancy quantum memory module. The Superion 256 unit will be deployed for an SDT client in South Korea to anchor a collaborative effort in designing next-generation hybrid quantum-classical data centers. To support this deployment and future expansion, SDT is establishing a dedicated quantum manufacturing and integration facility in Gumi, South Korea, which will oversee the assembly, packaging, and commissioning of IonQ's SiV quantum memory modules and complete systems. SDT CEO Jiwon Yune said the Gumi facility is slated to become an active operational hub within IonQ's broader global supply chain, and noted the company's role will also extend to a separate in-country cancer center project developing hybrid quantum-classical infrastructure for medical and biomedical research with IonQ. The partnership elevates the two companies' relationship beyond cloud software integration into physical hardware production, assembly, and regional distribution, complementing IonQ's existing partnerships with Hyundai Motor Company, SK Telecom, KISTI, Seoul National University, and Sungkyunkwan University.