QNu Labs announced the launch of India’s first and one of the world’s most extensive Quantum Key Distribution (QKD) networks. Spanning 500 Kilometres, this cutting-edge network is deployed over existing optical fibre infrastructure using entirely indigenous and patented technology developed within India. This remarkable achievement, under the auspices of the National Quantum Mission by the Department of Science & Technology, marks a significant milestone in quantum-secure communication.
A formal announcement about the demonstration of (QKD) network spanning over 500 Kilometres was made on the sidelines of the Emerging Science Technology and Innovation Conclave (ESTIC 2025). Dr. Jitendra Singh, Hon’ble Minister for Science and Technology, Prof. Ajay K. Sood, Principal Scientific Adviser to the Government of India, Dr. Ajai Chowdhry, Chairman, Mission Governing Board of the National Quantum Mission, Prof. Abhay Karandikar, Secretary Department of Science and Technology, and other officials were present on this occasion.
This initiative aligns with the vision of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who envisions India as a prominent leader in emerging technologies and secure digital infrastructure. It establishes India as a global leader in this transformative field, reinforcing our commitment to innovation and advanced cybersecurity.
This pioneering development not only enhances our national security but also positions India as a key player in the second quantum revolution, opening new horizons for secure digital communication and advanced cybersecurity. This demonstration was made possible under a project funded through the I-Hub Quantum Technology Foundation, a Technology Innovation Hub under the National Mission on Interdisciplinary Cyber Physical Systems (NMICPS) hosted at IISER Pune.
The breakthrough addresses the urgent quantum threat landscape where the emergence of quantum computers has made traditional security protocols like RSA and ECC highly vulnerable, with some of the recent threat intelligence reports indicating they could be broken in minutes.
Adversaries engage in “harvest now, decrypt later” attacks—stealing encrypted data today to crack once quantum computing capabilities mature in the next 2-3 years. While traditional encryption securing banking, government, and critical infrastructure will become obsolete, QKD provides mathematically proven security based on quantum physics that future quantum computers cannot break.
Revolutionary Efficiency: India’s Innovation Edge
QNu Labs has redefined quantum network economics through breakthrough architecture:
- Traditional Global Approach: 500 KM requires 10 nodes at 80-100 KM spacing
- QNu’s Innovation: Same 500 KM requires only 4 nodes at 150-200 KM spacing
- Impact: 60% infrastructure reduction; 2000 KM network realisation with 14 nodes with the indigenous technology versus 32 globally
“The launch of this network demonstrates India’s capability not just to participate but lead in critical emerging technologies,” said Sunil Gupta, Co-Founder and CEO of QNu Labs. “We’ve proven that indigenous innovation can outperform global standards while making quantum security economically viable for global and nationwide deployment. As quantum threats accelerate with current advancements in quantum computing and AI, organisations face an urgent timeline and uphill task to upgrade their cryptographic infrastructure. Our network shows India has both the proven technology and economic model to lead the global quantum-safe transition.”
Strategic Roadmap: Foundation for Quantum-Safe India
This 500 KM network serves as the backbone for India’s quantum security infrastructure, enabling scalable expansion to inter-city, inter-state, and nationwide mesh networks. The trusted node architecture enables longer distance intercity networks supporting multiple verticals, including defence, government, BFSI, telecommunications, healthcare, automotive, and critical infrastructure.
How It Works: Physics-Based Unbreakable Security
Quantum Key Distribution (QKD) works by using quantum properties like the polarisation or phase of photons to create and share an encryption key between two parties, Alice and Bob. Its security stems from the fundamental principle that observing a quantum state inevitably perturbs it. Any attempt by an eavesdropper (Eve) to intercept the photons will change their state, creating detectable errors that alert Alice and Bob that the key has been compromised, so they can discard it. This makes it unbreakable in theory, as the laws of physics, not mathematical complexity, guarantee the security. The result: provably secure communication that quantum computers cannot compromise.
QNu Labs also unveils Quantum Suraksha Kavach (QSK), which is a Multi-layered, industry-agnostic, unbreakable, scalable security framework protecting the nation from current cyber-attacks, side-channel attacks and quantum attacks. From fibre to satellite, from ground to space, the Quantum Suraksha Kavach (QSK) secures every communication channel.
The 500 KM QKD Network is part of the Quantum Suraksha Kavach.
National Impact and Global Validation
QNu Labs is one of the 8 startups supported under the National Quantum Mission of the Department of Science and Technology. This deployment validates India’s Aatmanirbhar Bharat (Self-Reliant) vision. QNu Labs’ comprehensive product portfolio is evaluated and certified by various agencies and meets Indian and global standards.
With 11 granted patents and 15 pending, QNu Labs holds India’s largest quantum security IP portfolio. The company’s technology secures critical deployments across the Indian Army, Indian Navy, DRDO, world’s leading banks, Fortune 500 healthcare companies, global defence organisations, and automobile manufacturers. 30+ deployments done globally, and they’re growing.
Global Leadership
QNu Labs has earned recognition from World Economic Forum (WEF) in 2025, Forbes DGEMS Top 200 Company (in 2024, and 2025), from ET Now as “Best Tech Brands”, from Intellyx (Dutch Market Analyst Firm) as Digital Innovator of the Year 2025, NASSCOM Deeptech “Emerge 50″ and “League of 10” in the cyber security, and multiple government awards, including Raksha Anveshan Ratna Award for Tech Breakthrough by Ministry of Defence 2022, the National Technology Award from the Department of Science & Technology in 2022, DSCI’s Most Innovative Product of the Year in 2019. Also, it has been mentioned by global organisations, research and media houses, such as the Markets and Markets, CBInsights, Quantum Insider, Inc. 42, Gartner, CNBC TV 18 and more.
The company’s QShield™ platform—the world’s first hybrid, full-stack Quantum Security-as-a-Service solution—integrates QRNG, QKD, Post-Quantum Cryptography (PQC), and Quantum HSM into hybrid deployments across cloud, on-premise, data centres, and edge environments.
Strategic partnerships with Cisco, Thales, AWS, Viavi Solutions, STL (Sterlite), BSNL and many others strengthen QNu’s global ecosystem, while the company operates in India, the USA, the Middle East, and Australia with growing market presence across defence, BFSI, healthcare, telecommunications, automotive, and other critical sectors.
Founded in 2016 and incubated at IIT Madras Research Park, QNu Labs – Born in India, Built for the World is the world’s only full-stack quantum security company offering comprehensive hardware and software solutions. Backed by India’s National Quantum Mission and other investor networks, the company accelerates the world’s transition to quantum-safe infrastructure with indigenous solutions—designed, developed, manufactured, and certified in India—that protect critical assets globally across defence, government, financial services, healthcare, and enterprise sectors.
QNu Lab’s Product Portfolio
ARMOS: 200 KM point-to-point QKD with trusted node scalability, QNu Labs also provides hybrid QKD solutions, such as Digital Quantum Key Generation and Distribution, Freespace QKD etc.
TROPOS Series: Quantum Random Number Generators for data centers, end points, drones, satellites and applications
Prime Minister Narendra Modi unveils QRNG SIP powered by QNu Labs at ESTIC 2025
QNu’s Quantum Random Number Generator System-in-Package (QRNG SIP), India’s first quantum random number generator in small chip format, was presented to the Government of India and the Prime Minister as a hallmark of the foundation of quantum technology, indigenous innovation, developed under the National Quantum Mission. QNu Labs’ Tropos QRNG SIP creates true quantum randomness—unhackable, unpredictable, and validated by local and global standards.
Hodos (PQC-based solution): Quantum resilient public key cryptography-based software that is a hard problem for large-scale quantum computers to solve.
QHSM: Indigenous NIST, FIPS-compliant Quantum Safe Hardware Security Module with PQC support.
Q-ORE: Quantum-safe drone communication platform for drone security in transit and at rest
QShield Platform: Integrated PaaS/SaaS including various quantum-safe services, such as Quantum-safe VPN Service (QConnect), Quantum-safe Key Management Service (QVault), Quantum-safe Messaging, Audio/Video Calling and Collaboration Service (QVerse), Quantum-secure file storage and sharing (QSFS) and Quantum-safe ‘Entropy as a service’ to provide true randomness through a quantum phenomenon (Qosmos).
