Recently, the leader in the quantum computing industry, IonQ (IONQ.US), announced multiple transactions to accelerate its layout in the quantum computing field, while also disclosing better-than-expected performance guidance. Boosted by this news, the stock surged over 34% by Thursday's close.

Strengthening leadership position.

To strengthen its commercial leadership position in the quantum networking field, IonQ reached a final agreement on Tuesday to acquire all operational assets of Qubitekk. Qubitekk is a company specializing in quantum networking, headquartered in Vista, California.

The transaction is expected to enhance IonQ's customer base and quantum networking capabilities. Through the acquisition of Qubitekk, the company plans to strengthen its quantum networking expertise and technology portfolio, adding 118 U.S. and international patents in quantum networking hardware and cybersecurity.

The company stated that this deal may signify IonQ's effort to accelerate its commercialization plans and introduce cloud-based quantum computing systems for AI processing. The acquisition of Qubitekk is expected to boost near-term booking and revenue opportunities.

Commercializing quantum technology.

At the same time, IonQ has partnered with many well-known companies in various industries to bring quantum solutions to other sectors.

IonQ and ANSYS Technology (ANSS.US) announced on Tuesday that they will collaborate to integrate quantum computing into the $10 billion Computer-Aided Engineering (CAE) industry. IonQ and ANSYS Technology are dedicated to accelerating simulation technology, expanding high-fidelity design exploration, shortening product development times, and enabling innovative products to reach the market faster.

This partnership aims to provide access to simulation for both quantum experts and non-experts, with the goal of increasing enterprise value and streamlining product development processes. ANSYS Technology solutions are used in product development across various industries and hold a significant share in all modeling and simulations in the CAE market. Combining IonQ's quantum computing advancements in specific tasks with ANSYS Technology's complex simulation technology will open doors for new discoveries and innovations. With these advancements, ANSYS Technology will be able to access key infrastructure to test and enhance its technology in a quantum environment.

IonQ will utilize ANSYS Technology's multiphysics field technology, including structural, optical, photonic, and electromagnetic simulation software, to design and optimize critical components for the highly scalable and high-performance next-generation quantum computers.

On Thursday, IonQ announced a partnership with NKT Photonics, a subsidiary of Hamamatsu Photonics, to procure next-generation laser systems for IonQ's trapped ion quantum computers and network devices. This collaborative relationship involves NKT Photonics developing and delivering three prototype optical subsystems to IonQ by 2025, aimed at supporting the commercialization of IonQ's datacenter-ready quantum computers, such as IonQ-Tempo and future barium-based systems.

The collaboration with NKT Photonics demonstrates IonQ's focus on providing commercially scalable enterprise-grade quantum computers that can easily integrate into today's data center environments. NKT Photonics' laser systems, based on fiber laser technology, have significant advantages in performance, cost, delivery time, and SWAP (Size, Weight, And Power). Additionally, these laser systems will be modular, reliable, and rack-mountable, making them an ideal technology to meet the wavelength and power requirements of IonQ's barium-based trapped ion system.

According to the company, this agreement is the latest in a series of manufacturing and supply chain announcements supporting IonQ's goal of providing high-performance, enterprise-grade, commercial quantum systems. Earlier this year, IonQ announced the opening of the first manufacturing facility in the United States capable of producing quantum computers for customer datacenters. IonQ also delivered the first overseas ion trap to its QuantumBasel datacenter in Europe.

IonQ has also partnered with companies like Airbus (EADSY.US) and Hyundai in integrating quantum solutions into their industries.

Better-than-expected performance guidance.

IonQ's optimistic performance guidance also boosted its stock price.

Looking ahead for the full year, IonQ expects revenue to be between $38.5 million and $42.5 million, higher than the company's previous expectations of $38 million to $42 million, and also above the analyst average expectation of about $40.5 million. The company continues to expect orders to be between $75 million and $95 million.

In terms of third-quarter performance, despite a loss of $0.24 per share for the company, higher than the market's expected loss of $0.23 per share, revenue increased by approximately 103% year-on-year to $12.4 million, exceeding the market's expectation of $10.2 million, with new order revenue reaching $63.5 million.

So far this year, IonQ's stock price has risen by approximately 79%, with a valuation of about 117 times the expected revenue for the year.