Toshiba, Safe Quantum Enter Agreement to Accelerate Quantum Communication Solutions in North America

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Toshiba America, Inc. announced a partnership with Safe Quantum in the areas of quantum key distribution (QKD) and quantum communications. Led by John Prisco, Safe Quantum champions the commercial adoption of quantum technology and will support Toshiba's ongoing work to secure the quantum future.

Data breaches and security incidents across all industries are on the rise, and with heightened concerns about serious cybersecurity threats, governments and businesses are recognizing the critical need for new ways to effectively manage sensitive data and protect vulnerable infrastructures against cyberattacks. Unlike conventional encryption, QKD solutions use encoded photons to secure the distribution of encryption key material that is unhackable – a major driver in why North America is expected to account for the largest share of the global Quantum Cryptography market. The collaboration will help fulfill the increasing interest among potential users in North America looking to better understand QKD solutions as a new system to safeguard their communications against future threats.

"We're proud to partner with Safe Quantum in our shared vision of keeping the transmission of sensitive information safe and secure through our reliable and ultra-secure quantum cryptography solutions," said Tsuyoshi Sasano, who is vice president of digital solutions and leads Toshiba's QKD business in North America. "This collaboration furthers Toshiba's global expansion of our QKD business in North America, with previously established partnerships in Japan and the UK."

Toshiba started research into quantum cryptography in 2003. Since then, it has demonstrated several notable world firsts, including being the first to announce QKD over 100km of fiber in 2004. This means its fiber-QKD platform products are able to address quantum-secure communication requirements over hundreds of kilometers in metropolitan areas. Toshiba was also the first with a continuous key rate exceeding 1 Mbit/second in 2010 and 10 Mbit/second in 2017. And in 2020, it set the new world's fastest record for any QKD system to date of 13.7 Mb/s over 10km of fiber. In February, they announced the first successful proof-of-concept test to secure mission-critical blockchain applications with QKD alongside JP Morgan Chase and Ciena. 

"2022 will mark the year we see commercial quantum technology really take off, as more innovators see the future quantum-secure world as the ultimate way to protect data," said John Prisco, CEO and founder of Safe Quantum. "We are delighted to be partnering with Toshiba on this important use case for quantum information science."