IonQ Weakens on Scoring Deal with Abu Dhabi

IonQ (NYSE: IONQ) shares fell hard Monday. The company, boasting a status as a leader in the quantum computing and networking industries, announced the renewal of its agreement with Abu Dhabi’s Quantum Research Center – Technology Innovation Institute (TII) in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). This renewed customer agreement ensures that TII will continue to leverage IonQ’s quantum computing technology to advance the UAE’s position as a global leader in science and technology.Today’s agreement expands the parties’ January 2023 partnership and incorporates access to IonQ Forte – one of IonQ’s most powerful, commercially available quantum computers to date. IonQ Forte is powered by IonQ’s largest single core quantum processor and represents the cutting edge in trapped ion architecture with its 36 all-to-all connected qubits and the ability to pass the AQ36 performance benchmark. With access to IonQ Forte, TII can create a solutions platform for hybrid quantum/classical algorithms such as variational quantum algorithms.“We are proud to have TII as a returning customer and to support their ambitious quantum research initiatives. Having renewed our relationship for the second time in less than two years, we value the confidence that UAE’s TII has shown in IonQ as one of their quantum partners,” said Rima Alameddine, Chief Revenue Officer at IonQ.IONQ shares slumped $1.03, or 2.5%, to $39.73.