Alphabet is a leader in quantum and artificial intelligence.
Microsoft has created a new state of matter for its quantum technology.
Nvidia is bridging the gap between traditional and quantum computing.
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Investing in quantum computing is something that is on the horizon for many investors. Artificial intelligence (AI) is the big theme right now, and investors are focused on this area, with quantum computing potentially becoming relevant a few years down the road.
With that in mind, I think the smartest move for investors is to focus on the AI side of companies that are also competing in quantum computing. There are a handful of companies doing this, and I think they make the best quantum computing buys in 2026.
They are on my shopping list Alphabet(NASDAQ: GOOG)(NASDAQ: GOOGL), Microsoft(NASDAQ: MSFT)and Nvidia(NASDAQ: NVDA)because all these companies excel in AI, but also have significant exposure to quantum computing.
Image source: Getty Images.
Alphabet, the parent company of Google, has invested heavily in creating an in-house quantum computing solution. This has several benefits, but it will all be for nothing if it cannot produce viable results. The biggest obstacle facing quantum computing in going mainstream is its accuracy, as it is incredibly difficult to control the mechanics of a particle to use it for quantum computing. However, Alphabet is starting to see some positive results.
In October, Alphabet announced that it had delivered the first verifiable quantum edge. It ran an algorithm 13,000 times faster than a traditional supercomputer. This algorithm has applications in several areas, but the biggest use case would be for MRI technology.
Taking a step towards commercial viability, it shows that Google’s efforts are not in vain, and with the massive resources Alphabet has as a company, it can continue to fund Google’s quantum computing research. Even if Google’s quantum computing activities fall flat on their face, Alphabet is still a strong company in the field of generative AI, which makes it a great stock to own overall.
Microsoft has a similar background to Alphabet in that it has almost unlimited resources to delve into quantum computing. The reason both companies want to develop in-house solutions is so they don’t have to pay an outside computer supplier for their computing hardware. This has become very expensive for AI as Nvidia makes a huge profit from cloud computing providers like Microsoft and Alphabet. If everyone can develop their own solution in-house, they can cut out the middleman and make their cloud computing segment more profitable.
Microsoft’s quantum computing activities have taken science to new levels as it claims to have created a new state of matter as a by-product of its quantum computing activities. There are a lot of new technologies being developed by this industry and Microsoft is a big part of it.
Similar to Alphabet, if its quantum computing activities don’t pan out, the stock will still be a great option to invest in as its platforms have become a top option for building AI models.
Last is Nvidia. The semiconductor giant may seem like an odd inclusion on this list, as it isn’t aiming to build a quantum processing unit (QPU) like the others. Instead, it focuses on the most powerful traditional computing units available, its graphics processing units (GPUs).
However, he is aware of the effect quantum computing could have on industry. She believes that quantum computing will be most useful in a hybrid approach, where quantum and traditional computing methods are used in tandem to speed up the computing process.
Quantum computing systems do not easily interact with the massive computing infrastructure that has been built for AI and other computing methods. So Nvidia released its NVQLink, which allows quantum computers to connect to this interface to network in traditional computing stacks.
If Nvidia is right about the hybrid approach, it will be in great shape by selling the best traditional compute unit alongside the gateway technology. However, it could be missing a huge market if QPUs start replacing more tasks than expected. We’ll see if Nvidia’s gamble pays off, but so far it seems to be going well for the world’s biggest company.
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Keithen Drury has positions in Alphabet and Nvidia. The Motley Fool has positions and recommends Alphabet, Microsoft and Nvidia. The Motley Fool recommends the following options: long $395 January 2026 Microsoft calls and short $405 January 2026 Microsoft calls. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
Top 3 Quantum Computing Stocks to Buy in 2026 was originally published by The Motley Fool
