Over the past twelve months, Rigetti’s stock has performed a rather sprightly jig, rising nearly sixty percent. QCi, alas, has been more akin to a slumbering dormouse, managing a mere three percent. The question, naturally, is whether this disparity is merely a temporary blip, or a sign that Rigetti is the more sensible mount in this decidedly speculative race. Let’s have a look, shall we?
The latter half of the previous year witnessed a certain…discernment descend upon investors. The air, thick with the scent of overvaluation, cleared somewhat. The question was no longer simply what could AI do, but what was it actually delivering? A fair reckoning, and one that has left a few fields fallow, but also revealed the hardy perennials.
The cause of this mild upset? A news report, it seems, linking Palantir to the workings of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). Now, ICE is a large organization, a truly sprawling bureaucracy, and one that, let’s just say, doesn’t always enjoy the most glowing press. Turns out, they’ve been using some of Palantir’s tools to sort through tips submitted by the public. It’s a bit like asking a very sophisticated librarian to organize a mountain of postcards – some useful, many utterly baffling.
The stock, RGTI, has seen a bit of a run – a 137.1% increase over five years. Which, frankly, feels less like shrewd investment and more like the kind of speculative bubble my Uncle Barry gets caught in with penny stocks and promises of revolutionary toilet attachments. I’m not saying it’s destined to fail. I’m just saying my portfolio needs a little more…certainty. Like, will I be able to afford a decent pair of walking shoes next year? That’s the level of risk I’m comfortable with.
Folks were scratching their heads, wondering what it all meant for ASML. But let me tell you, a clear head can see this report wasn’t about one company; it was a sign of the times, a whisper of what’s brewing in the whole semiconductor industry. It’s a bullish sign, plain and simple.
There’s been a right explosion of these “thematic” funds, they call ’em. Folks throwin’ money at anything with a buzzword attached. As of late last year, near $779 billion was floatin’ around in these things, globally. And amongst ’em, there’s this Bitwise Crypto Industry Innovators ETF – BITQ, they call it – that’s managed to hold onto a respectable $431 million for almost five years now. That’s a spell of longevity in these parts, mind you. Seems folks are willin’ to gamble a bit on the future, or at least on the companies promising a future.
At its heart, Nextpower is a peddler of precision. It builds the mechanisms that allow solar panels to follow the sun’s journey across the heavens, squeezing every last photon out of the day. It’s a bit like having a very attentive butler for your electricity.2 This tracking isn’t just clever; it’s profitable. More sun equals more power, and in a world increasingly desperate for anything that doesn’t involve digging up ancient, grumpy carbon, that’s a very good thing indeed.
Look, I wasn’t buying the hype entirely. A bargain? Please. But attractive? Relatively. Like a rattlesnake in a silk bathrobe. Dangerous, yes, but with a certain… allure. A flicker of something REAL in a world drowning in synthetic garbage.
The explanation, as is so often the case, lies not within Nokia’s own management, but in the wider sphere of speculative enthusiasm. The present downturn originates with a sweeping sell-off of those companies most devoted to the pursuit of Artificial Intelligence, and led, with characteristic boldness, by Microsoft. It is a matter of some delicacy, naturally, to discuss such matters, but one cannot help but note the inherent risk in attaching undue importance to novelties.
The Federal Reserve, in a gesture as dramatic as a misplaced semicolon, opted to hold benchmark interest rates at 3.50-3.75% during its latest policy meeting. This decision, anticipated with all the fervor of a tax audit, marked the first pause in policy easing since the halcyon days of July 2025. The central bank, having trimmed rates thrice last year in response to President Donald Trump’s fiscal and trade theatrics, now stands like a cautious librarian, shushing the economy into submission. Two governors, Stephen Miran and Christopher Waller, dissented with the poise of spurned suitors, advocating for a quarter-point cut, but their pleas were as effective as a whisper in a hurricane.