Toshiba Backs Singapore’s Quantum-Safe Goals

Toshiba has showcased the work it is doing in quantum security technologies to support Singapore’s goal of becoming a quantum-safe nation.

Singapore announced its aim to become quantum safe within 10 years through the National Quantum-Safe Network Plus (NQSN+) as part of its 2023 Singapore Digital Connectivity Blueprint.

The nation plans to defend against the threat to current cryptographic standards posed by near-future quantum computers with technologies such as post-quantum cryptography (PQC) and quantum key distribution (QKD).

Toshiba has carried out more than three decades of research in quantum technology, which it is now progressing from research to commercial QKD systems in support of Singapore’s security goals.

In 2023, the company opened a $16 million quantum innovation center at Cambridge Science Park in the U.K. to develop quantum-secure networking technology. This initiative uses QKD technology, which utilizes quantum physics principles to create resilient encryption against potential decryption attempts.

In 2021, Toshiba formed a strategic partnership with Singapore-based quantum communications company SpeQtral to combine Toshiba's fiber-based QKD expertise with SpeQtral's satellite QKD innovations. Singapore’s Infocomm Media Development Authority of Singapore appointed SpeQtral to build the NQSN+ with telecommunications operator SPTel in 2023.

Related:Toshiba Details Progress in Quantum Secure Networks

The partners launched Southeast Asia's first Quantum Networks EXperience Centre (QNEX) for demonstrations and prototyping and their milestones in the first quantum-secure link across SPTel's fiber network.

In September 2024, Toshiba and SpeQtral signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with ST Engineering to accelerate the development of tailored quantum-safe solutions, focusing on protecting sensitive communications across sectors such as finance and government.

The final part of the quantum-safe Singapore jigsaw is education, with Toshiba, SPTel and SpeQtral collaborating to educate businesses about quantum technologies, including quantum key distribution, as part of the quantum-safe Singapore NQSN+ initiative.