Researchers have achieved a significant milestone in quantum computing infrastructure with 98% transmission efficiency through a quantum router tested on China's Origin Wukong superconducting quantum computer. According to Science and Technology Daily, several Chinese research teams developed and tested the coherent routing system for bucket-brigade quantum random access memory (QRAM), using three independent quantum routers and a two-layer network. The breakthrough addresses a key challenge in expanding QRAM by routing quantum information through increasingly complex systems. The coherent routing system acts as a 'fast lane' for data transmission, with researchers exploring how such routing can be implemented using superconducting computing hardware. This achievement represents a significant advancement in building scalable quantum memory systems on existing superconducting hardware.
The experiments demonstrated 98% information transmission efficiency for individual quantum routers, while overall transmission efficiency reached 93% across the two-layer routing network. As reported by Science and Technology Daily, researchers conducted random-access tests with average fidelity of 94.8% for single routers and 82.4% for the two-layer network. The distinction between single router performance and network efficiency is crucial, as strong performance from individual components establishes the foundation, while network tests show how systems perform with additional routing stages involved. The work was conducted on Origin Wukong, China's third-generation, independently developed superconducting quantum computer, allowing researchers to test routing functions across two layers of complexity on the same platform. The 98% figure describes the reported transmission performance of an individual router, while the network tests provide insights into system-level performance when additional routing stages are involved.
A significant breakthrough in quantum-resistant cryptocurrency protection has emerged with StarkWare's Quantum-Safe Bitcoin (QSB) method successfully mined on Bitcoin's mainnet. According to TechNewsWorld, this represents the first time anyone has actually demonstrated quantum-safe Bitcoin transactions on mainnet rather than just theoretical proposals. The QSB method protects specific Bitcoin outputs by adding a second quantum-resistant lock alongside existing elliptic curve cryptography, using hash functions instead of vulnerable mathematical problems. David de Paula Santos Silva, founder and CEO of CyberX, explained that this demonstrates Bitcoin holders can move coins into quantum-resistant construction without changing consensus rules, though the method does not make Bitcoin itself quantum-safe. Joni Zhuleku, chief research officer at Altcoin Pro, noted that while most holders won't need immediate use, it proves quantum defense doesn't have to wait on Bitcoin protocol changes.
While quantum computers remain in prehistory, legal professionals are already preparing for the quantum era through post-quantum cryptography standards. NIST finalized its first three post-quantum cryptography standards in August 2024, identifying FIPS 203 for key establishment and FIPS 204 and 205 for digital signatures. NIST mathematician Dustin Moody emphasizes that organizations should begin transitioning immediately to ensure data security in the quantum era. The Quantum Computing Cybersecurity Preparedness Act, enacted in 2022, requires covered federal agencies to inventory information technology vulnerable to quantum decryption and develop prioritized migration plans. Legal experts note that major cryptographic migrations can take 10 to 20 years, making early preparation essential for clients facing quantum-related risks including trade secret protection, acquisition costs, and cybersecurity transitions. As quantum computing expert Bob Sutor noted in a June 2026 interview, "We are currently in the prehistory of quantum computing. A cryptographically relevant quantum computer is not here yet, but the legal work has not begun."
According to BeInCrypto reports, the industry is building quantum computing infrastructure regardless of its ultimate application. Two key questions remain unresolved: somebody must still fill the quantum memories, creating an issuer inside a system advertised as having no custodian, and a bearer instrument with no ledger has no recovery mechanism. A lost, stolen, or decayed note takes its value with it. The security model inverts classical assumptions, where hijacked quantum resources would cost suppliers their stock rather than their secrets, and the randomness that becomes keys appears only at measurement time. The Chinese breakthrough in quantum routing represents a shift in China's quantum computing research toward testing more complex quantum functions on real machines, with potential implications for both quantum money development and Bitcoin vulnerability scenarios. Adam Everspaugh, cryptography expert at Keeper Security, argues that while StarkWare's work is creative, it falls short of real quantum resistance and requires protocol-level changes rather than individual holder solutions.
