Quantum Leap: Infleqtion gets Navy contract

Welcome to the latest edition of “Quantum Leap” where The Fly decodes news and activity in the quantum computing space.

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PATENT APPLICATION: Sealsq (LAES) announced the filing of a new patent application for a protection technique against side-channel attacks on polynomial cryptographic algorithms. The patent introduces a novel solution at the message encoding stage of polynomial-based post-quantum cryptography algorithms. According to the company, it hardens hardware implementations against side-channel attacks that exploit power consumption, electromagnetic emissions, or timing variations.

MACHINE LEARNING SOFTWARE: Infleqtion (INFQ) announced that the U.S. Navy has awarded the company a $1M contract to advance its quantum-inspired rapid context, or QuIRC, machine learning software platform for radio frequency signal processing. The program will support the development of advanced radio frequency signal processing capabilities that enhance situational awareness in complex radio frequency environments. The Phase II award builds on a successful Phase I feasibility demonstration and will expand the effort to develop an integrated prototype for testing and evaluation in operationally relevant Navy environments.

POST QUANTUM CRYPTOGRAPHY: Microchip (MCHP) announced the expansion of its portfolio of Trust Shield, post-quantum cryptography ready devices with the TS1800 Platform Root of Trust controller and the TS50x secure boot controller. The devices are designed to help system architects address emerging cybersecurity mandates, including the European Cyber Resilience Act and Commercial National Security Algorithm Suite 2.0, while supporting evolving data center, compute, defense, telecommunication and infrastructure security standards. “The transition to post-quantum cryptography is no longer a discussion for the future, it’s a real-world implementation challenge already at our doorstep, arriving faster than many organizations expected,” said Nuri Dagdeviren, corporate VP of Microchip’s secure computing group. “At Microchip, we’re helping customers address this implementation challenge by building PQC readiness directly into the foundation of system trust, so platforms can evolve securely as new threats and standards emerge.” The TS1800 integrated circuit functions as an external Platform Root of Trust controller, enabling secure boot, secure firmware updates, attestation and certificate handling using hardware-accelerated post-quantum cryptography. Built around a high-performance Arm Cortex-M4F processor, the TS1800 delivers up to twice the processing performance of previous generations of Microchip root of trust controllers.

QUANTUM CORRIDOR: IonQ (IONQ) and Florida LambdaRail announced an agreement to support delivering on FLR’s vision for a quantum-safe network spanning Florida. Together with Florida Quantum and local colleges and universities, the groups’ first step will seek to create a nearly 100 mile quantum corridor from Palm Beach County to Miami-Dade connecting three research and education institutions.

FTC REQUEST: According to a regulatory filing, as previously disclosed, on January 25, IonQ (IONQ) entered into an agreement and plan of merger with SkyWater Technology (SKYT). On April 24, IonQ and SkyWater each received a request for additional information from the U.S. Federal Trade Commission in connection with the FTC’s review of the mergers. The issuance of the second request extends the waiting period under the HSR Act until 30 days after both IonQ and SkyWater have substantially complied with the second request, unless the waiting period is extended voluntarily by the parties or terminated earlier by the FTC. “IonQ and SkyWater expect to promptly respond to the second request and to continue to work cooperatively with the FTC in its review of the mergers. The mergers are still expected to be completed in the second or third quarter of 2026, subject to the expiration or termination of the waiting period under the HSR Act and the satisfaction (or waiver) of other customary closing conditions,” the company stated.

QUANTUM ADVANTAGE: IBM (IBM) said, on its Q1 earnings conference call, that it continues to make progress in quantum and remains on track to deliver the first large scale fault tolerant quantum computer by 2029. The company added that it strongly believes that partners will achieve the first examples of quantum advantage this year, leveraging IBM hardware.

ANALYST COMMENTARY: Northland remarked to investors that it came away from investor meetings with increased conviction that Xanadu (XNDU) is the leader with respect to the photonic modality approach to quantum computing and the photonic modality is best positioned to address scaling with high quality qubits due to utilizing photons for the quantum processing unit and the interconnection between QPUs, whereas all other modalities are attempting to network between QPUs via the conversion of an electronic signal into an optical signal while still preserving the quantum information encoded.

Canaccord analyst Kingsley Crane initiated coverage of Xanadu Quantum with a Buy rating and $45 price target. Xanadu has delivered a scalable, networked, room-temperature system over the past 18 months as the quantum industry emerges from a long pre-commercial winter, the analyst told investors in a research note.