Zacks Equity Research analysts are spotlighting five major technology stocks as the AI buildout and quantum computing race intensify heading through September 2026.
The companies featured include D-Wave Quantum (QBTS), Rigetti Computing (RGTI), IBM (IBM), Alphabet (GOOGL), and Amazon (AMZN), each representing a different position along the AI and quantum investment spectrum.
The AI infrastructure buildout has moved well beyond the planning stage, with hyperscalers committing hundreds of billions of dollars to data centers, accelerators, networking, and power infrastructure to meet surging demand.
Alphabet has raised its 2026 capital-spending guidance to $195 billion to $205 billion, while Google Cloud revenues jumped 82% year over year in the second quarter of 2026.
Quantum computing is advancing on a separate and slower commercial timeline, with governments and corporations increasing funding as practical applications inch closer to reality.
The U.S. government recently committed $300 million under the CHIPS and Science Act to D-Wave Quantum, Rigetti Computing, and Quantinuum, with each company receiving $100 million in R&D funding in exchange for minority government stakes.
Despite the federal funding announcement, both QBTS and RGTI remained more than 25% below their 2026 starting levels, underscoring the volatility that continues to define pure-play quantum stocks.
PwC estimates global data-center capital spending will reach $31.6 trillion through 2050, with annual spending rising from roughly $800 billion in 2026 to $1.8 trillion by 2050.
McKinsey reports that quantum-computing companies generated more than $1 billion of revenues in 2025, with potential to rise to $4.4 billion by 2028, though return on investment remains difficult to quantify.
More than 300 companies are already experimenting with quantum technology, but many applications remain experimental or hybrid, according to McKinsey’s analysis.
AWS sales surged 37% year over year in the second quarter of 2026, its fastest growth in 18 quarters, pushing the business to a $169 billion annualized revenue run rate.
Amazon also said its AI business surpassed a $25 billion annual revenue run rate, growing at a triple-digit rate, and recently entered a long-term partnership with Qualcomm covering up to $60 billion in AI data-center chips.
AMZN is projected to report full-year 2026 earnings growth of 82.2% on revenue growth of 15.7%, and the stock carries a Zacks Rank of 2, or Buy.
Google Quantum AI expanded its research into neutral-atom systems in 2026 and expects commercially relevant quantum computers to become available by the end of the decade.
Cloud backlog at Alphabet reached $514 billion, and GOOGL is projected to report full-year 2026 earnings growth of 89.6% on revenue growth of 26%, carrying a Zacks Rank of 3, or Hold.
IBM provides the strongest direct quantum exposure among the three established players while maintaining a substantial enterprise AI and hybrid-cloud business anchored by Red Hat.
In the second quarter of 2026, IBM software revenues increased 5%, with Hybrid Cloud revenues up 11% and Data revenues up 19%, as the company continues to diversify its revenue base.
IBM plans to invest more than $10 billion in quantum over the next five years and announced a quantum innovation hub with Lockheed Martin in Switzerland this week.
The hub will feature an IBM Quantum System Two deployed at the Swiss National Supercomputing Centre, expanding IBM’s quantum ecosystem across research, government, and industrial applications.
IBM is projected to report full-year 2026 earnings growth of 6.4% on revenue growth of 4.3%, and the stock carries a Zacks Rank of 3, or Hold.
