The recent announcement of Quantum Supremacy by Google makes the development of a first-generation quantum computer that can instantaneously unravel confidential banking, medical and national security data an increasing likelihood. With fears growing that citizens’ digital information such as WhatsApp messages, personal emails, health information, or banking transactions – could become vulnerable to cyber-attacks, a secure line of defence is more critical than ever.

The QT Flagship is supporting four consortia that are making our data highly secure: the CiViQ (or Continuous Variable Quantum Communications) consortium has developed efficient Quantum Key Distribution (QKD) protocols to secure this critical digital information; researchers at QRANGE have created quantum random number generators that can be implemented in such protocols; and UNIQORN scientists are searching for ways to miniaturise QKD down to the chip-scale to be easily integrated into any consumer device. Finally, researchers from the Quantum Internet Alliance (QIA) are aiming to put this all together, hardware and software, to build the future quantum internet.