KDDI Research, Inc. (“KDDI Research”), and Toshiba Digital Solutions Corporation (“Toshiba Digital Solutions”) have developed a multiplexing technology for quantum key distribution (QKD) that is theoretically impossible to eavesdrop. This technology assigns secret keys to the C-band and high-volume data signals to the O-band, enabling multiplexed transmission over a single optical fiber. Furthermore, utilizing this technology, we have successfully transmitted secret keys and high-capacity data signals at 33.4 Tbps over 80 km for the first time.

STMicroelectronics has introduced hardware cryptographic accelerators and associated software libraries for general-purpose and secure microcontrollers, ready for future generations of embedded systems to resist quantum attacks.

Toshiba Europe Limited has today announced that its commercially available quantum key distribution (QKD) systems now natively incorporate the latest post quantum cryptography (PQC) standard, bringing an additional layer of security to its quantum-safe networking platform.

Thales Alenia Space, the joint venture between Thales (67%) and Leonardo (33%), and Hispasat, Redeia’s satellite services operator, have announced the start of the development, manufacturing, verification, and validation phase of the QKD-GEO prototype, Spain’s quantum key distribution system from geostationary orbit. With a budget of 103.5 million euros, the QKD-GEO mission is a project initiated by the Spanish Secretary of State for Telecommunications and Digital Infrastructures and funded by European funds from the Recovery, Transformation, and Resilience Plan (PERTE Aeroespacial), for which contracting is managed by CDTI.

SandboxAQ today announced a round of more than $300 million from Fred Alger Management, LLC, T. Rowe Price Associates, Inc., Mumtalakat, Parkway Venture Capital, Breyer Capital, Rizvi Traverse, S32, US Innovative Technology Fund, Ava Investors, Eric Schmidt, Marc Benioff, David Siegel, Yann LeCun, IQT, and other prominent investors. The funding round valued the company at $5.3 billion on a pre-money basis.

ESA, together with a Starion-led industrial consortium, has marked a significant milestone in quantum communications technology with the successful implementation of a terrestrial quantum key distribution (QKD) link. The link took place between its European Space Security and Education Centre (ESEC) in Belgium and a data centre in Luxembourg. The development comes as part of the International Use Cases for Operational QKD Applications and Services (INT-UQKD) project, which exemplifies ESA's commitment to bridging the gap between advanced space technology and practical business applications.

planqc has been selected to lead a €20 million project to build and deploy a 1,000-qubit quantum computer at the Leibniz Supercomputing Centre (LRZ) in Garching near Munich. This advanced quantum computer, based on neutral atoms, will be integrated into LRZ’s high-performance computing (HPC) infrastructure, serving as an accelerator for scientific research and towards industrial applications.

An international team from LMU, Harvard University and the Institute of Materials Science in Japan has successfully demonstrated the detection of individual photons in the infrared spectrum by utilizing a revolutionary material called magic-angle twisted bilayer graphene. This discovery represents a significant step towards extending superconducting single-photon detection to longer-wavelength photons. The results are featured in Science Advances.

HSBC announced today that it has successfully trialled the first application of quantum-secure technology for buying and selling tokenized physical gold. This achievement marks the latest step by HSBC in pioneering the protection of critical applications from potential future quantum computing attacks.

Toshiba Digital Solutions Corporation (Toshiba), the Toshiba Group company of digital and quantum technology businesses, alongside its strategic partner SpeQtral, a leading quantum communications technology company, have announced the signing of a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with ST Engineering, a global technology, defence and engineering group, to formalize their strategic alliance and strengthen their go-to-market strategy for quantum-secure communications solutions in Singapore and Southeast Asia.