As a second wave of quantum computing companies list their shares this year, something unexpected has been happening.
This might seem like a time when investment in quantum would start to narrow to the handful of companies with the best chance of being first to build a full-scale machine. After years of intriguing science experiments, the race is on to show which can be scaled up to produce a workable machine by the end of this decade. At times like this, investors are usually focused on trying to separate the winners from the losers.
The reality is turning out to be very different. Instead, money has been flowing into a widening range of companies, including backing newer quantum technologies that are further back in the development cycle. A field that could have a profound impact on things as far apart as drug discovery and measuring investment portfolio risk looks as wide open as ever.