We recently compiled a list of the 15 Best Small Cap AI Stocks to Buy Right Now. In this article, we are going to take a look at where IonQ, Inc. (NYSE:IONQ) stands against the other small cap AI stocks.
Smaller-cap AI stocks may present potentially attractive investment opportunities for investors seeking exposure beyond the already well-known Big Tech giants. Many of these companies operate quietly under the radar, developing specialized AI products, software, and applications that could significantly impact various sectors, from healthcare and finance to cybersecurity and manufacturing. While large-cap technology leaders have already benefited greatly from early enthusiasm and experienced significant stock-price appreciation during calendar 2023-2024, smaller AI-focused companies often remain relatively undiscovered and undervalued. This positions them as potential second-wave beneficiaries, providing investors with an attractive entry point into the next stage of AI-driven growth. As the market increasingly recognizes the commercial viability and disruptive potential of these innovative, smaller-cap players, their stocks could offer substantial upside compared to their larger, more mature counterparts.
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The first wave of AI beneficiaries during 2023–2024 was largely limited to GPU manufacturers, semiconductor equipment providers involved in GPU production, and Big Tech companies that acquired GPUs and built data centers to secure the computing power needed to support the AI revolution. However, after two years of aggressive spending, 2025 is shaping up to be the year that determines whether further capacity is truly needed. The actual capabilities of AI remain largely at the level seen in early 2023 when ChatGPT was first introduced. With no major technological breakthrough to date, analysts have begun to question whether such massive hardware investments are justified. The issue was further amplified in January 2025, when a Chinese startup claimed to have trained an AI model with performance comparable to U.S. large language models – at only a fraction of the cost. If true, the Chinese firm DeepSeek could disrupt the AI training and inferencing market, potentially undermining the prevailing thesis that the world needs hundreds of billions in GPU infrastructure to meet computing power demand.
The aforementioned developments may have important implications for global markets. On one hand, the first-wave beneficiaries of AI could face a correction as demand for GPUs weakens and the substantial hardware investments made in 2023–2024 prove excessive. On the other hand, a second wave of beneficiaries may emerge, as Chinese technology drives down the cost of AI training and inferencing, effectively lowering barriers to entry for startups and companies operating on tight budgets. With significantly reduced costs to enter the market, hundreds of startups and small-cap companies may accelerate the development of AI products and solutions with practical, mass-market use cases. If successful, we could witness the rise of an entirely new cohort of winners. With that in mind, the key takeaway for readers is that this may be the right time to look for potential second-wave AI winners – particularly among small-cap companies with market capitalizations under $5 billion.
Also, macroeconomic conditions may become more favorable in the coming quarters, further supporting smaller-cap companies. Despite the Fed keeping interest rates steady at the latest FOMC meeting, we believe that deteriorating GDP growth forecasts from the Atlanta Fed – driven by early Trump 2.0 policies – may increase the likelihood of interest rate cuts in upcoming meetings. This view is reinforced by the impending public debt rollover, which may need to be financed at lower interest rates to maintain the US debt servicing capacity at reasonably healthy levels. Lower interest rates are generally favorable for small caps, as they reduce financing costs and support capital allocation toward growth projects.
A quantum computer on a countertop in an engineering laboratory with a technician at work.
Our Methodology
For this article, we used Finviz to screen for technology stocks under a $5 billion market cap. Although small-cap stocks typically have a market cap under $2 billion, we included companies below $5 billion to add more AI firms. We then manually selected companies that have significant revenue exposure or potential growth opportunities related to AI products & solutions. Finally, we compared the list with our proprietary Q4 2024 database of hedge funds’ ownership and included in the article the top 15 stocks with the largest number of hedge funds that own the stock.
Why are we interested in the stocks that hedge funds pile into? The reason is simple: our research has shown that we can outperform the market by imitating the top stock picks of the best hedge funds. Our quarterly newsletter’s strategy selects 14 small-cap and large-cap stocks every quarter and has returned 373.4% since May 2014, beating its benchmark by 218 percentage points (see more details here).
IonQ, Inc. (NYSE:IONQ)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 28
IonQ, Inc. (NYSE:IONQ) is a quantum computing company that develops and operates quantum computers based on trapped-ion technology. Its systems are accessible through major cloud platforms and are designed to solve complex problems beyond the capabilities of classical computers. The company offers both hardware and software solutions, including a proprietary operating system and quantum programming tools. IONQ’s technology is closely tied to AI, as quantum computing is expected to accelerate AI model training and optimization, positioning the company to benefit from the convergence of AI and quantum computing. The US-based company ranked 6th on our recent list of 11 Best Quantum Computing Stocks to Buy Right Now.
IonQ, Inc. (NYSE:IONQ) has established itself as a commercial leader in quantum computing since its IPO, with a focus on building a rich and deep ecosystem. The company’s Forte system currently operates with 36 algorithmic qubits, and they plan to announce an AQ 64 system by year-end, which will be 270,000,000 times more powerful than the current Forte system. IONQ differentiates itself through its room-temperature quantum computing solution, which requires only the space of two refrigerators and connects to a standard wall socket, making it more practical and energy-efficient than competitors. The company has secured significant partnerships, including a $94.5 million contract with the Air Force Research Lab for systems and networks. IonQ’s portfolio includes both quantum computing and networking capabilities, with approximately 933 patents (400 in networking, 500 in computing).
IonQ, Inc. (NYSE:IONQ) has demonstrated commercial success through partnerships with major organizations like AstraZeneca for drug discovery, General Dynamics for anomaly detection, Ansys for computational engineering, and Airbus for logistics. For fiscal year 2024, IonQ has provided revenue guidance of $75 million to $95 million, with expectations to achieve nine figures in GAAP revenue the following year. The company’s quantum networking initiatives have expanded through acquisitions, including IDQ, which brings relationships with key partners like SingTel, SK Telecom, and JP Morgan. With 28 hedge funds owning the stock, IONQ is one of the best small cap AI stocks to buy right now.
Overall IONQ ranks 10th on our list of the 15 best small cap AI stocks to buy right now. While we acknowledge the potential of IONQ as an investment, our conviction lies in the belief that AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns and doing so within a shorter time frame. If you are looking for an AI stock that is more promising than IONQ but that trades at less than 5 times its earnings, check out our report about the cheapest AI stock.
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Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey.
