Quantum computing software firm Sandbox AQ, a startup which spun off from Alphabet Inc. last year, said on Tuesday it has raised a US$500 million round, according to reports.
Quantum computing software firm Sandbox AQ, a startup which spun off from Alphabet Inc. last year, said on Tuesday it has raised a US$500 million round, according to reports.
Breyer Capital, T. Rowe Price funds and Salesforce Inc. founder Marc Benioff’s TIME Ventures all participated in the round, as did its Chairman Eric Schmidt, the former chief executive of Google LLC.
Sandbox AQ is led by CEO Jack Hidary, who previously led quantum computing research at Alphabet’s X lab. Its main focus is on building post-quantum cryptography software, which is a new approach to data encryption designed to withstand attacks from quantum computers.
The most potent supercomputers on the market today are thought to be millions of times slower than quantum computers, which make use of quantum mechanics. There is a real possibility that such machines could render the current encryption techniques useless, even though that day is most likely still years away.
In anticipation of the day when quantum computers are ready and available, there is concern that hackers are already gathering data. The National Institute of Standards and Technology of the U.S. Department of Commerce established new cryptography standards last year that could better withstand quantum computer attacks.
The software from Sandbox AQ searches through an organisation’s IT infrastructure to find any data that is still protected by outdated cryptography standards. According to Hidary, it seeks to strengthen the encryption of the entire company and identify which system components require urgent updating.
Additionally, Sandbox AQ offers quantum simulation tools that can help with the creation of new substances and medicines, as well as quantum sensors for use in technology that may eventually replace the Global Positioning System and medical devices.
Sandbox AQ has said it’s targeting customers in areas such as telecommunications, financial services, government, healthcare and cybersecurity. Existing customers previously disclosed include New York’s Mount Sinai Health System, SoftBank Group Corp.’s telecommunications business and Vodafone Business.
Originally published at ejinsight