Arqit Quantum (ARQQ) 2024 Annual Gateway Conference summary

Industry context and threat landscape

• Current encryption relies on public key infrastructure (PKI), which is vulnerable to quantum computing advances that can break math-based encryption methods.

• Malicious actors, notably in China, are collecting encrypted data now to decrypt it later when quantum computers become viable.

• The White House and NSA have called for a shift to symmetric encryption to future-proof sensitive data.

Technology and product differentiation

• Symmetric encryption, used by government and military, is not math-based and is resistant to quantum attacks.

• Traditional symmetric key distribution is secure but not scalable; a new platform enables scalable, on-demand symmetric key creation.

• The architecture never exchanges keys, making interception nearly impossible; it is fully standards compliant and integrates with existing IT infrastructure.

• AES 256 is supported, and the solution meets NSA and White House standards for classified and future-proof encryption.

Commercial traction and partnerships

• OEM partners include Juniper, Fortinet, HP, Intel, and Dell, who have integrated the technology into their products without compensation.

• Intel plans to embed the encryption solution in its next-generation Xeon processors; Sparkle (Telecom Italia) has launched a quantum-safe network service using the technology.

• Licensing fees are based on the number of points of presence or end users, with a go-to-market strategy focused on IT vendors and telecom operators.