Xanadu Announces Canada’s First Quantum Network Designed for Innovation & Collaboration

(Newswire.ca) Xanadu has announced the creation of the Canada Quantum Network (CQN), in partnership with MaRS and Creative Destruction Lab (CDL). Commencing with three nodes in Toronto, located at Xanadu, MaRS and CDL, the CQN will provide a quantum testbed for partner organizations to access and develop new kinds of applications in quantum cryptography, communications, and computation. Similar quantum networks can be found in countries including the U.S., China, the Netherlands, and the U.K., with the CQN being the first of its kind in Canada.
“We believe that deploying a quantum network in Canada with a collaborative set of Canadian partners will jumpstart both innovation and economic development in the emerging field of quantum technology. Our initial partners, MaRS and Creative Destruction Lab, will support entrepreneurs in developing new kinds of applications on the Canada Quantum Network,” said Christian Weedbrook, Xanadu Founder and CEO. “Working together we can find the appropriate leverage for quantum technologies while building Canada’s leadership in quantum computing.”
Possible applications from the CQN include quantum secure communication, quantum sensing, and distributed quantum computing. This can lead to unhackable elections, secure financial transactions, and increased national security for government, law enforcement and the military. Quantum networks using photonic quantum computing can utilize existing infrastructure and fiber networks and offer yet undiscovered opportunities while creating a level of privacy, security and computation that is impossible to achieve with today’s internet.
Yung Wu, CEO of MaRS. “The development of quantum computers is accelerating and quantum networks are required to take advantage of quantum computing. The creation of the CQN allows Canada to retain and grow the talent pool for quantum applications and is an important cornerstone in the development of the next big industry in Canada.”
Sonia Sennik, Executive Director at Creative Destruction Lab says, “The first phase of the CQN in Toronto is the stepping stone towards the long term vision of a nation-wide quantum internet across Canada. Xanadu is a CDL alumni and one of five technology partners in CDL Quantum, an objectives-based program offering a robust set of resources for new founders to launch and scale a startup in the quantum ecosystem.”