The US Department of State and the University of Maryland signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to build capacity in the area of quantum computing. The University of Maryland Quantum Technology Center (QTC) will supply the department with technical information and input regarding the latest developments in quantum technologies and related enabling technologies. This partnership aims to ensure that the US department’s international initiatives are informed by a sound technical understanding of quantum technologies.
Quantum computing
EU-US Trade and Technology Council holds third ministerial meeting
The third ministerial meeting of the EU-US Trade and Technology Council (TTC) was held on 5 December 2022 in Washington, DC, USA. During the meeting, the two parties:
- Reiterated the importance of cooperating on trust and security in the ICT ecosystem and noted that the TTC Working Group on ICTS security and competitiveness plans to discuss transatlantic subsea cables’ connectivity and security, including alternative routes, such as the transatlantic route to connect Europe, North America and Asia.
- Reiterated their commitment to developing and implementing trustworthy artificial intelligence (AI), building on the Joint Roadmap on Evaluation and Measurement Tools for Trustworthy AI and Risk Management.
- Announced plans to launch a pilot project to assess the use of privacy-enhancing technologies and synthetic data in health and medicine.
- Announced plans to establish an expert task force to strengthen research and development cooperation on quantum information science, develop common frameworks for assessing technology readiness, discuss intellectual property, and export control-related issues as appropriate, and work together to advance international standards.
- Announced progress on increasing standards cooperation, for instance through the Strategic Standards Information mechanism meant to enable the EU and the USA to share information about international standardisation activities and react to common strategic issues.
- Announced that the US Department of Commerce and the European Commission are entering into an administrative arrangement to implement an early warning mechanism to address and mitigate semiconductor supply chain disruptions in a cooperative way.
- Stressed the importance of eliminating the use of arbitrary and unlawful surveillance to target human rights defenders, and expressed concerns over government-imposed internet shutdowns.
- Announced plans to enhance transatlantic trade, for instance through developing joint best practices for the use of digital tools to simplify or reduce the cost of commercial actors’ interactions with the governments in relation to trade-related policy, legal requirements, or regulatory requirements.
- Announced the launch of a Talent for Growth Task Force to facilitate exchanges of experiences on training and capacity building and serve as a catalyst for innovative skills policies.
These and other commitments and initiatives are outlined in the joint statement issued at the end of the meeting.
Communication app Signal is preparing for post-quantum cryptography
In an interview for TIME magazine, Signal’s President Meredith Whittaker confirmed that the communication app is preparing for post-quantum cryptography. The company is investing in research to update the Signal protocol for quantum safe cryptography. The ambition is to roll out the protocol before it becomes necessary, but it still will take some time to be finalised.
USA and France to strengthen cooperation on quantum computing
The US Office of Science and Technology Policy and France’s Ministry of Higher Education and Research signed a joint statement on cooperation in quantum information science and technology (QIST).
The statement builds on several other USA-France agreements, including a 2018 Agreement on Science and Technology Cooperation and a 2021 Joint Statement on Science and Technology Cooperation which identified QIS as a focus. Both countries have recognised the potential for QIST to transform many areas of science and technology through the development of quantum computers, quantum networks, and quantum sensors which will offer new capabilities over traditional devices.
On 1 December, the French Embassy in the USA announced that the statement was transmitted to Paris in the form of the embassy’s first post-quantum encrypted diplomatic message.
New quantum discovery could lead to secure post-quantum communication
New research on quantum entanglement, conducted by Heriot-Watt University in the UK and the University of Geneva in Switzerland, could help deliver communication networks difficult to target in the post-quantum era. Researchers found a way for quantum entanglement to handle noise and loss over long distances, opening the door to ‘practical quantum networks with the highest form of security’.
Quantum entanglement is when two particles – such as photons – remain connected and operate in tandem, even when they are separated over a vast distance. The research claims that this could provide the potential for truly secure communications in the future, even if a communication device is unsafe or in criminal hands.
India and Finland have agreed to enhance cooperation in digital partnership in Future ICT, including quantum computing
Indian Minister for Education and Skill Development, Shri Dharmendra Pradhan, held a meeting with the Finnish Minister of Education, Science and Culture Mr. Petri Honkonen, in New Delhi. The meeting aimed at reinforcing and further strengthening the cooperation between the two countries in the area of Future ICT.
Both sides have initiated cooperation on quantum technologies and are working on a detailed plan to establish the Indo-Finnish Virtual Network Centre on Quantum Computing. The ambition is to develop 20 qubits superconducting based Quantum Computer in 1st phase and further scale it up to 54 qubits in the second phase.
Austrian scientists developed a new approach to universal quantum computing
A team from ParityQC and the University of Innsbruck have developed a new method of universal quantum computing based on the ParityQC architecture. The approach proposes a universal gate, where the architecture can perform operations between two or more qubits on a single qubit, for quantum computing with all-in-all connectivity and a robust system to avoid bit-flip (an unintentional state switch from 0 to 1) errors. This method seems to overcome some of the limitations quantum computers face today and could enable the development of a universal quantum computer.
US representative Kim Young proposed bill to apply quantum computing to critical manufacturing priorities
Kim Young, the US representative for California’s 39th congressional district, proposed the Quantum in Practice Act. The Quantum in Practice Act would amend the National Quantum Initiative Act to include quantum molecular simulations and modelling in federal scientific research. The bill would enable US companies to take further advantage of emerging technologies such as quantum computing.
Superconducting quantum processor is first demonstrated in Russia
Scientists from the University of Science and Technology in Moscow implemented a four-qubit quantum processor in Russia for the first time. A two-qubit experiment was conducted by Russian scientists earlier this year. Superconducting qubits are efficient and promising quantum objects for developing and implementing quantum computations. The next objective of the joint project will be focused on the development and testing of 8-qubit quantum simulators and processors.
The US Air Force is quantum-proofing its networks
The US Air Force has contracted the quantum company SandboxAQ to analyse its existing encryption capabilities and to protect Air Force data networks against quantum attacks of the future. The company will implement an end-to-end, crypto-agile framework to protect Air Force and Space Force data networks from quantum attacks.